


Multiple Matches

by Jestana



Category: Mass Effect: Andromeda
Genre: Alternate Universe - Soulmates, Canon Temporary Character Death, Don't copy to another site, F/M, M/M, Multi, Open Relationships, Polyamory, Polyamory Negotiations, sort of soulmates
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-11
Updated: 2021-01-23
Packaged: 2021-03-15 22:13:50
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 11
Words: 36,857
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28696011
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Jestana/pseuds/Jestana
Summary: Pathfinder Freddy Ryder has trained and prepared for this, but he'd expected to have more time before the job passed to him.
Relationships: Male Ryder | Scott/Reyes Vidal, Peebee/Male Ryder | Scott, Peebee/Male Ryder | Scott/Reyes Vidal, past Harry Carlyle/Alec Ryder/Ellen Ryder
Kudos: 1





	1. What a Mess

**Author's Note:**

> This is the same verse as [Meeting Your Match](https://archiveofourown.org/works/16441784), just switching up which twin became Pathfinder and incorporating ideas I'd come up with for [Keep Breathing](https://archiveofourown.org/works/24777568). I blatantly copied from myself, so if some scenes seem familiar, that's why.
> 
> The major character death is canonical, so people _should_ already know it's coming.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Freddy has a big job ahead of himself.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A huge responsibility has been put on Freddy's shoulders and he doesn't have any family with him to help.

"Hey, Harry," Freddy greeted his godfather with a smile that looked like it would crack at any moment. "How're things?"

Harry studied his godson for a moment, noticing the tense set of his shoulders and unnatural stillness. Then he tilted his head towards his office. "Let's talk privately."

"Sure." Freddy's quick agreement confirmed Harry's assessment as they walked to his office.

The moment the door closed behind them, Harry opened his arms in invitation. "Hug?"

" _Fuck_ yes." Freddy hugged his godfather, burying his face in Harry's shoulder and gripping his medical tunic tight with both hands. Harry hugged his godson just as tightly, ignoring the tears that stung at the back of his eyes.

After several long, quiet minutes, Freddy let out a deep, shuddering breath and straightened up. Harry squeezed Freddy's shoulders, concerned. "Feeling better?"

"Yeah." Freddy scrubbed at his violet eyes with one hand. "This trip isn't working out the way I hoped it would."

Harry raised an eyebrow at his godson, skeptical. "Did you _really_ expect things to go _perfectly_?"

"No, but at least better than _this_." Freddy made a face like his father and sister would.

Harry's breath hitched, feeling as if he'd been punched in the stomach. "Fuck, you look just like Alec when you do that."

"Sorry?" Freddy gave him an apologetic look and signed the word even as he spoke it.

For a moment, Harry bowed his head, pushing down his grief. Freddy didn't need to deal with it right then Managing a weak smile, he looked back at his godson. "It's all right, Freddy. I'd rather you be yourself than tiptoe around me."

"I-- fuck, Harry, I shouldn't even _be_ Pathfinder yet." Freddy's shoulders slumped out of his godfather's grip. "That should still be Dad."

Harry offered him a sympathetic, understanding smile. "I know, Freddy, but _you_ are Pathfinder now and you may as well get used to it."

"Yeah, right, thanks, Uncle Harry." Freddy roughly scrubbed his face with the heels of his palms and muttered, " _Fuck._ "

Chuckling humorlessly, Harry leaned back against the desk, exhausted. "I agree whole-heartedly, Freddy, but what do you think Alec would want us to do?"

"He would want us to carry on and either find or make a home for everyone." Freddy's mouth twisted as if he'd eaten a whole lemon.

This time, Harry's chuckle was more genuine and he extended one foot to nudge Freddy's playfully. "I know, I know: it's very trite and overused, but you _know_ that's what Alec would want us to do."

"At least he's with Mom, now." The moment the words were out of his mouth, Freddy looked stricken, as if he hadn't meant to say them aloud.

Harry reached out and gently tilted his godson's chin up so violet eyes met green. "I understand what you meant, Freddy. I share the sentiment, to be honest."

"It was still insensitive of me to say that in front of _you_." Freddy stopped and took a deep breath, letting it out slowly. "I'm starting to sound like Terry, aren't I?"

Finally, Harry laughed, cheered up by the reminder of his goddaughter. "A little, but you _are_ siblings. It was bound to happen eventually. I'll be very surprised when Terry sounds like _you_ at any point."

"She'll surprise _both_ of us, then." Freddy grinned, almost defiantly. It reassured Harry to see it. He knew Alec would understand.

Nodding, Harry took Freddy's hand and squeezed it gently. "Hold on to your sense of humor, Freddy. I have a feeling you're going to need it as the Pathfinder."

"I will, Harry, I promise." Freddy returned the squeeze, still smiling, but serious, too.

Harry tugged him into another hug, not looking forward to their impending separation. Right now, they were the only family they each had. "I'm going to miss you."

"I'll miss you, too, Uncle Harry." Freddy returned the hug tightly as if he wasn't looking forward to the separation any more than Harry. "Take good care of Terry."

Harry gave him an incredulous look at that request. "That goes without saying."

"Yeah, yeah." Laughing, Freddy eased back, lightly nudging their foreheads together. "Right, so I'd better get going."

Harry pressed his forehead against Freddy's for a moment, and then gave him a gentle nudge towards the door, part of him wishing he hadn't switched jobs with Lexi. Then he remembered Habitat 7 and how _old_ he felt and knew it'd been the right decision. "Don't hesitate to comm me or visit if you want to talk."

"Of course." Freddy rolled his eyes, the same violet as his father and sister. He slowly backed towards the door, clearly reluctant to leave.

Harry made shooing motions with his hands, trying to get this first separation over and done. "Go, you silly ass."

"I'm gone!" Smiling, Freddy turned and exited the medical office.

Once the door shut behind him, Harry let himself crumple to the floor, burying his fingers in his thick black hair. _Fuck. I wish I could tell him the truth about Ellen, but I promised Alec I wouldn't. Except he's gone now. We never discussed what to do if **this** happened.  
_

*

"Wait!" Freddy barely had time to register the shout before a blur knocked him away from the alien console and flat on his back.

An asari with black make-up smudged across her golden eyes smiled down at him from her seat on his stomach. Before he could catch his breath or she could speak, Cora interjected, her assault rifle pointed at the stranger. "Back up. Literally."

"Whoa, easy." The asari lifted her gloved hands above her shoulders, twisting to address Cora and Vetra. "Whoa, easy. You've come this far, just let it ride..." Once they lowered their rifles, she turned her attention back to Freddy, who just gazed up at her with amusement. "I've been studying this tech for months. I don't know how you activated those glyphs, but you have to let them cycle through their channels..." She leaned forward to rest her hands on his shoulders. "It's going to be all right. Trust me, okay?" Grinning, she hopped to her feet, which allowed Freddy to do the same. "I know, I know--who am I?" Wondering if she ever stopped to breathe, he shook her offered hand as she rambled on. "I mean, it's obvious who _you_ are. I saw the ship swoop in..." he glanced at Cora and Vetra, the former of whom looked skeptical while the latter seemed amused. "...you're a Pathfinder. Was beginning to think the Initiative just made you guys up so the rest of us wouldn't lose hope, but you're for real, huh?"

Grinning, he took the opportunity to half-jokingly suggest, "You want to knock me down a couple more times to make sure?"

"No, that's okay. You're obviously corporeal--" she winked at him, propping a hand on one hip. "--pretty solidly built, actually." Before he could ask for her name, the monolith above them hummed to life. "Well, look at that."

They watched as two beams of light emerged from the top of the monolith and connected to what looked like two other monoliths a short drive away. SAM informed them, "System has stabilized. I'm establishing a connection."

"Ah, crap." The asari's smile disappeared as she noticed something over Freddy's shoulder. Drawing a pistol, she shot at something over his shoulder.

Whirling around, Freddy spotted a bot crashing to the ground not far away. "We encountered something like that back on Habitat 7. It didn't attack us, though."

"These will," the asari told him as more bots began to appear. "Start shooting!"

Rolling his eyes, Freddy drew his shotgun from his back and used his biotics to propel him towards the nearest bot, smashing into it hard enough to knock it out of commission. "That was slightly underwhelming."

"Watch your back, Ryder!" Cora yelled, smashing into another bot that had somehow appeared next to him.

A flurry of blaster shots finished off a third bot. Cora threw up an arm to protect her face, a biotic shield protecting them from flying shrapnel. Behind them, Vetra called, "Sorry about that!"

"Forgot to tell you that their power cores can be very finicky," the asari called as they turned to shoot down the rest of the bots.

Not quite stifling a chuckle, Freddy called back, "Thanks for the warning!"

"You're welcome!" she sounded far too cheerful as she continued to shoot bots.

Beside Freddy, Cora murmured, "Is she for real?"

"She's definitely corporeal," he rejoined with another chuckle, remembering the weight of her on his stomach.

Once all the bots were scrap, they stowed their weapons. "Not bad. My first tangle with the Remnant was a lot messier."

"The Remnant?" Freddy repeated, curious about the name. Absently, he signed the word.

Her gesture included everything around them. "These monoliths, the Observer and Assembler bots--they're all remnants of something much bigger." She shrugged. "But that's too long. I hate long. So, 'the Remnant.' Like my name's better as Peebee."

"Thanks for helping with those things," he told her, gesturing at the bots. "I'm Freddy Ryder, Pathfinder, as you figured out."

He almost offered his hand again, but remembered that they'd already done that and propped his hand on his hip instead. "You're a mystery. I've been studying those glyphs for months, then you arrive and--pffft! Solved."

"I saw this tech clear the skies on Habitat 7," Freddy explained, resolutely _not_ thinking about the fact that it'd led to his father's death, too. "We're hoping it can do the same for Eos."

Peebee looked intrigued, tapping her chin with the fingers of one hand. "Huh. Atmosphere manipulation? Maybe. Fits the model..."

"What model?" he retorted, rolling his eyes. "We barely know anything about the Remnant."

Tilting her head, Peebee told him, "All Remnant tech is connected. You interfaced with this monolith somehow--" she pointed up at the two beams of light extending from the top. "--and now it's pinging the others." Shrugging, she finished, "If you wake them up, too, they must lead to whatever master switch might fix the radiation."

"You're sure it'll help Eos?" Freddy challenged her, with arched eyebrows. "Or am I just a handy way to get those monoliths online?"

Peebee scowled at him. "I'm a little offended by that."

"Uh huh." He didn't buy it for one moment.

Her scowl fading, Peebee waved a hand dismissively. "Okay, maybe, but we both get what we want. Just try. It's not like we can make this planet worse."

"Ha, good point." Freddy couldn't stifle a soft, bitter laugh of agreement.

She tapped her omni-tool. "Here, take my navpoints. I'll be--I've got to figure this interfacing out." Peebee moved to the console, staring at it intently. "Just be careful. This planet's all kinds of strange."

"You be careful, too, Peebee." He tapped her upper arm with a closed fist and led the others back to the Nomad. They had monoliths to visit.

*

"Fascinating, huh?" Freddy's voice hardly distracted Peebee from reviewing the data she'd gathered from the monoliths.

Glancing at him out of the corner of her eye, she asked, "This the kind of stuff that gets you out of bed in the morning, too?"

"Solving alien mysteries on hostile worlds?" He asked, sitting down beside her. "Do you even _need_ to ask?"

She laughed, finally turning to look at him, meeting his violet eyes. "Ha. A man after my own heart." Fidgeting with her omni-tool, she muttered, "I wish we'd gotten more answers."

"How did you get here?" Freddy wondered, offering her a plate of food. "After what happened with the outposts, I didn't expect to run into anyone."

Grateful for the chance to eat something besides rations, Peebee accepted the plate and explained between bites, "I had a ride. Had to fudge the flight plan a little. The Nexus didn't want to risk anyone else." She shrugged. "Or let people see how rough it got. But there's still so much here. And some of us want to find it. We didn't come all this way to sit on our hands."

"The bots we've found--you had names for them?" He ate his own food more slowly, violet eyes intent on her.

Shrugging, she told him, "I had to call them _something_. The Observers fly around spying on anyone who touches this tech." She 'flew' her free hand around to demonstrate. "The Assembler ones make other Remnant. Not sure how yet--maybe minifacturing or 3D printing." She tapped her fork against her bottom lip a few times before continuing. "And the Breachers smash into anything they don't like. Which is us. Easy to remember."

"Peebee is not a typical asari name." Freddy looked amused.

Giving him an arch look, Peebee countered, "Nope, it's a name. Good enough, and short enough, for now."

"Do you also go by the name 'Crazy Blue'?" he asked with a grin.

She laughed. "Nope, Clancy gave me that name and I didn't correct him."

"Any ideas how old this technology is?" Freddy waved a hand towards the monoliths in that loomed in the distance. He'd refused to investigate the vault they'd unlocked until morning, no matter how much she had pleaded and cajoled.

Peebee shrugged. "It's been dormant for centuries, but beyond that: no idea." Finished with her plate, she set it on the ground in front of them and activated her omni-tool once more. "In the grand scheme of things, that's not very long, but it was enough for conditions here to get royally screwed up, if they really _are_ connected."

"You think they might not be?" He took her plate and placed it on his.

Another shrug. "We've assumed that they are, but it's possible they aren't."

"Hopefully we'll find answers when we explore the vault tomorrow." Tapping her shoulder with his fist, Freddy got to his feet and headed off.

Peebee couldn't resist watching him walk away, admiring the way his pants showed off his gorgeous ass. _I'd tap that._

*

"Vault restart is now complete," SAM announced as the deadly fog receded.

As Freddy tried to calm his racing heart, Peebee remarked, "That was... Talk about a rush."

"What was that... field?" He asked, gesturing in the direction it'd disappeared.

Vetra's mandibles twitched with annoyance. "I know a trap when I see one."

"An immune response?" Peebee posed with a shrug. "Maybe one last scrub before startup? This place is full of surprises."

Giving a tired laugh, Freddy added, "Nothing like outrunning death."

"Or reactivating a huge, mysterious vault." Peebee looked at him admiringly. "Nice going."

SAM interjected before Freddy could think of a response, "Atmosphere processor is online. Recovering last console activity."

"Is that the Heleus Cluster?" Peebee wondered as they stared up at the starmap projected above their heads.

Freddy nodded, recognizing it from the _Tempest_. "Yeah. There we are. That's Eos."

"Something happened," Vetra observed, looking thoughtful now as she studied the starmap. "Because we restarted the system?"

Studying the colorful display, Freddy mused, "If that light is us... then all these points could be vaults on other worlds. Dormant, like this one."

"Maybe, but why is there a whole network of them?" Peebee questioned, tapping her chin with one finger. "What's all this for?"

Pacing as he considered the question, Freddy reminded them, "This tech can create Observers from nowhere or ravage a whole planet, and that's just what we've seen." He ticked other facts off on his fingers. "The bots, those plants back there, the atmosphere processors..."

"I once did supply runs for a Council team that was seeding some ice planet's atmosphere," Vetra told them with an idle shrug. "Trying to melt the ice caps."

He nodded, remembering something about that. "To help it support life."

"Then maybe the first processor we saw was broken," Liam theorized, giving Freddy an apologetic glance at the reminder of Habitat 7. "Destroying that planet instead of..."

Lightly rapping his knuckles on Liam's shoulder in acknowledgement of his unspoken apology, Freddy speculated, "Is that what these builders were trying to do? Make worlds habitable? Even terraform a whole cluster?"

"That's different." Peebee moved towards one of the points of light, gold eyes intent. "Maybe it's active? We've got to go see!"

Though Freddy was just as curious as Peebee, he only said, "SAM?"

"Extrapolating," SAM responded. After a moment, he told them, "These coordinates lie beyond the space we have currently surveyed, Pathfinder."

He nodded, not surprised in the slightest. If the Initiative _had_ discovered a viable world, Tann and the others would have told him. "Mark it on our charts. We need more to go on." Satisfied that they'd discovered everything they could, Freddy added, "Let's head up to the surface. I could use some fresh air." They could see a difference from the moment they emerged from the vault. "Look at that sky."

"How?" Peebee demanded. "No atmosphere processor works that fast."

As SAM responded, Freddy crouched to examine the sand more closely. "If this effect is representative, Pathfinder, air and moisture patterns will show noticeable improvement. Eos could support an outpost."

"A foothold," Freddy added, feeling hopeful as he scooped up some of the sand. That's all we need--just enough to begin." Letting it trickle back to the ground, he addressed the others, "This Remnant technology could be the key to our survival. If we can control it."

Liam nodded. "You can. Kind of. Still, wouldn't hurt to find a manual."

"We've got a lead," Peebee told them, looking eager. "SAM marked it on the charts down there." She gestured vaguely at the ground below them. "That site is active, whatever it is. Who knows what we'll find there?"

Freddy raised an eyebrow at her. It was one thing for her to join them at their campsite on Eos. It was another to join their crew. "We? You want to come along?"

"I want to know what makes the Remnant tick," she reminded him, her gold eyes bright at the thought. "You've got a key to their technology--or a crowbar at least."

He _knew_ , if Terry was here, she'd scold him for thinking with his prick instead of his head, but he still told Peebee, "Welcome aboard. We'll get you a fancy job title to go over your bunk."

"I only need a footlocker," Peebee responded, backing towards her shuttle. "Datapad, toothbrush, clean underwear. That'll do." She waved as she stepped onto the shuttle. "I'll catch up with you!"

As he walked towards the Nomad with Vetra and Liam, the former commented, "She's a handful, but she knows her stuff. We could use the help."

"That was my thought, too," Freddy agreed, unlocking the Nomad.

They piled in and set off to start their third attempt at their first colony.

*

"Setting up in here, huh?" Freddy asked, wandering into the room off the escape pod Peebee had chosen for her bedroom in lieu of using a bunk.

Keeping her attention on the rem-tech in front of her, Peebee nodded. "Yeah, I'm going through what we got out of that vault..." Tapping her chin, she continued, "If I can crack this data storage box, it'll help with a personal project back on the Nexus. This is a nice, out-of-the-way place where I can tinker, and I can sleep anywhere." Remembering that she was technically part of the Pathfinder team, she quickly added, "Oh, but I will help _you_ find everyone a home. While I'm with you, at least."

"Does your brain ever take a breath?" He quizzed her with a teasing grin.

Smiling, she replied, "Heh, sorry. Not really. Even my dreams are in time lapse." Finally turning to face him, she continued, "I get it. You want to know who's on your ship, so you're in here to figure out what makes me tick, right?"

"Something like that, sure." Freddy shrugged, an amused smile on his lips.

Peebee knew she couldn't get away with not saying anything, so she resorted to sarcasm. "Well, I was born in a log cabin on rural Hyetiana to simple but loving parents who..." she let her words trail off into a fake snore, getting a soft huff of laughter out of Freddy. "I look forward, not back, Ryder. Why snooze through my life story? Get to know me out in the field, while we're uncovering mysteries of this galaxy." Deciding to offer him a small nugget of information, she finished, " _That's_ why I'm here. Got tired of yawning back home."

"Tackling complete strangers in the Milky Way wasn't doing it for you?" He asked with a coquettish smirk, reminding her of their first meeting.

Smirking right back, she countered, "I think tackling you anywhere would be fun." She feigned astonishment. "Did I say that out loud?" She tapped his shoulder. "Life won't be boring with you around. I may never yawn again."

"Maybe you need more sleep," Freddy suggested with an innocent smile belied by the playful glint in his violet eyes.

Rolling her eyes, Peebee rejoined, "We were out for 600 years. A special someone made the trip with me, and she woke up a different person." Ruthlessly ignoring the reminder that she no longer felt pulled towards Kalinda, she finished, "I've slept enough." After a moment, she sighed and added, "Ryder, the Milky Way was so... been-there-done-that. Even if I hadn't done it, _someone_ had. If there's one thing you should know about me, it's that I live for the unknown. For the never-been-done."

"That's just the one thing you _want_ me to know about you," he refuted with a calm smile.

She wasn't sure how to feel about the fact that he'd seen through her efforts at obfuscation. Keeping her tone light rather than pick a fight with the Pathfinder, she said, "Let's start with that, then. Buy me a drink sometime. Who knows _what_ will fall out of my mouth." Sighing, she offered an olive branch, "Tell you what: I need Remnant scrap--rem-tech, I call it--for projects like the one I mentioned. Which you're going to love, by the by. Promise to bring me what you scrounge and I'll submit to all your questions."

"Rem-tech, huh?" Freddy repeated, his smile brightening and making him look even handsomer, dammit. "You got it."

He tapped her arm with his fist and strolled back towards the bridge. Peebee couldn't resist watching his ass again. _I **really** want to tap that._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I wanted to acknowledge Harry's relationship to the Ryders and the fact that losing Alec hit him hard.


	2. New Allies?

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Freddy and team meet the Archon, find Aya, and meet the angara.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I think I actually outlined the story when I was writing this part. Otherwise, I'd have forgotten something important.

"Terry..." Freddy felt a lump form in his throat, staring down at his unconscious sister.

He hardly noticed when Harry moved to his side and gently steered him towards his office. When he heard the door close behind them, though, he let his composure crack, tears trickling down his cheeks. Familiar arms wrapped around him and he pressed his face to Harry's shoulder, giving in to the sobs and clutching his tunic. "Let it out, Freddy."

"I hate this, Uncle Harry," he gasped between sobs. "I wish Terry was awake and Dad was alive and-- just _fuck_."

His godfather gave a watery chuckle, gently catching the hand he'd used to sign the last word as he spoke it. "I know, Freddy. It's been hard for me, too, caring for Terry when she's like this."

"Where's the rewind button?" Freddy asked, reluctantly straightening up. "Can we start this whole mess over again?"

Harry raised his eyebrows. "Are you sure it'd go any better if we could go back in time?"

"Well, no, but it couldn't go worse than it has, could it?" Freddy scrubbed at his cheeks with the heels of his hands.

Shaking his head with a cautionary expression, Harry told him, "I can think of several ways it could go worse. Don't tempt fate."

"Right, right." Taking a deep breath and letting it out slowly, he asked, "Do you think I was right to tell Terry the truth? Even though it upset her?"

Sighing, Harry shrugged. "I think, even though it _did_ upset her, she'll thank you when she finally wakes up."

"Well, we _did_ promise not to lie to each other again after she came out to me," Freddy confided, taking another deep breath.

A smile twitching at the corners of his mouth, Harry told him, "There you go, then. If you _had_ lied to her, she'd have probably been even more angry."

"I _did_ consider lying." He wrapped his arms across waist, wishing desperately that Terry wasn't in a coma. "I didn't want to set her recovery back, but, well--"

Harry gripped his shoulders firmly and lightly tapped their foreheads together. "Freddy, your sister is strong. She _will_ pull through. You need to have faith in her as well as God."

"Yeah, right." Sighing, Freddy pressed his forehead against Harry's for a moment. "Can I just... hide in here for a bit?"

Nodding, Harry waved at the couch, where a blanket and pillow waited. "Of course. Take a nap if you like. Does anyone in your crew know you're here?"

"Um..." Freddy didn't look at Harry as he moved to the couch.

Harry caught the back of his shirt. "Freddy..."

"They knew I was reporting to Tann and the others," Freddy explained over his shoulder. "If they _really_ need me, they can ask SAM."

When Harry released his shirt, Freddy sat down and toed off his shoes. "Is there anyone on the crew you can relax with?"

"Sort of?" Freddy had expected to spend time with Terry when he wanted to relax. Not to mention he hadn't expected to _be_ the Pathfinder. "We're all still trying to figure out how to be a proper team and pull together."

As he stretched out on the couch, Harry pulled the blanket up and tucked it over his shoulder. "That's something you'll have to work at and maybe set an example."

"I'll try, Uncle Harry." Freddy smiled faintly up at him. "Thanks."

Harry bent and kissed his forehead. "Always, Freddy."

*

"Hey, Ryder." Peebee greeted Freddy as he settled onto the barstool next to hers. Instead of asking how he was, she just observed, "You look like shit."

Making a face, he propped his arms on the bar. "I feel like it, too." Pushing his fingers through his thick black hair, he remarked, "The Nexus is looking much livelier now, at least."

"Yeah, and this is after just _one_ successful colony," she reminded him with a playful nudge of her biotics.

He returned the nudge with his own biotics. "What was it like for you here on the Nexus before?"

"Well, I wasn't supposed to be woken up yet," Peebee confided with a playful wink. "That ex-friend I mentioned--my accomplice--she finagled my early thaw. So I kinda lived off the grid." He gave soft huff of laughter, but gestured for her to continue. "Snuck around, bullshitted my way onto excursions off-station. After I found my first Remnant ruin, I started, uh, borrowing shuttles. After that, I didn't spend much time on the Nexus." She shrugged. "I even missed most of the revolt."

Freddy took a placid sip of his drink. "From what I heard, it was quite revolting, so you were probably better off missing it." While she chortled as his joke, his omni-tool chimed. He checked it and nodded. "Right, SAM, let everyone know that they need to head back to the ship."

"Does this mean we're going to check out that other potential vault?" She hopped to her feet after finishing her drink. 

Nodding, he stood up, too. "That's the plan." They walked out of the Vortex together. "What drew you to the Remnant?"

"Are you kidding?" Peebee stared at him for a moment, astonished that even had to _ask_. "It's evidence of a sophisticated species no one knows anything about. It doesn't get any more intriguing than that." She gestured as they walked towards the dock where the _Tempest_ waited. "There's so much to discover. I want to be the first to figure them out. And the tech! It's on a different scale. If we can appropriate it, who knows what advances we'll make."

Freddy chuckled when she finally ran out of words. "Hopefully, we'll find plenty more Remnant for you to study."

"You're not intrigued by it at all?" She practically demanded as they walked through the corridor to the dock. He didn't seem enthusiastic at all.

He nodded, his smile widening somewhat. "Oh, I am. There's definitely a lot of potential applications for Remnant tech, but I'll leave that to the experts to figure out."

"Pfft, just because they have fancy degrees doesn't mean _you_ can't dabble," Peebee pointed out, thinking of her own project, waiting in her quarters on the Nexus.

Freddy arched his eyebrows at her, playful. "You mean like your secret project that you mentioned back on Eos?"

"Yep, but don't expect me to tell you anything about it just yet," she countered, amused by his not-so-subtle attempt to learn about her project before she was ready to reveal it to anyone.

Finally, he laughed, violet eyes bright with amusement. "You can't blame me for trying to sneak a clue out of you."

"No, I suppose not," Peebee contemplated as they walked up the ramp onto the _Tempest_.

The moment they reached the cargo bay, a small, polite smile settled onto Freddy's face, the amusement fading from his eyes. It was strange to watch. "I have things to do before we take off. See you, Peebee."

"See you, Ryder." She tapped his shoulder with her fist. Chuckling quietly, he returned the gesture and headed towards the Pathfinder quarters. Peebee headed up to the video conference area so she could watch the sky change as the _Tempest_ lifted off.

*

"Our experience with the kett makes us naturally distrustful of aliens," Jaal told Freddy as the latter joined him in the Resistance Headquarters on Aya.

Freddy nodded, not surprised. "We've had our own run-ins with the kett."

"Then you really do understand," Jaal replied, looking relieved, though he still didn't lower his sniper rifle. "When the Archon came to Heleus, he demolished our sovereign state--took what he wanted, as if we were nothing." Freddy grimaced, remembering that the Archon had almost done exactly that to the _Tempest_. "Now the kett mercilessly abduct angara. Often, we never see our people again." He gestured with his free hand. "Come this way. Evfra's waiting."

As they started in that direction, Freddy asked, "Wait, the kett kidnap you--steal your people."

"And the Resistance fights them every day, with everything we can," Jaal's voice, though quiet, was full of conviction.

Having had his own run-in with the Archon, Freddy supposed that there _had_ to be reason behind the abductions. "Is it attrition? What are they after?"

"You should save your questions for Evfra," Jaal told him without answering his question.

They passed a couple angara working at computer terminals and approached a third one standing apart from the others. Though built like Jaal, this angara had blue skin and wore a light blue scarf around his neck. As they drew within earshot, the blue angara snapped, "Kadara be damned. I won't lose Voeld."

"Evfra, this is one of the aliens from the Milky Way--a Pathfinder," Jaal announced just moments later.

When Evfra turned to look at them, he eyed Freddy suspiciously and repeated skeptically, "'Pathfinder.' It's an aggressive move, coming to Aya."

"It wasn't meant that way," Freddy defended the decision, hoping to make him understand. "I have an ark full of desperate people counting on me to find them a home before they starve."

Evfra nodded, his voice flat. "Of course, I feel for you and your people." Finally turning to face Freddy fully, he asked, "So. Pathfinder. Never mind how you even found us--why are you here?"

"On a hostile planet we call Eos, I explored a structure--a 'vault'--and brought it back online." Freddy took a couple steps forward, hopeful that Evfra would understand. "It stabilized that planet's environment"

Jaal moved to Freddy's side as he clarified, "'Remnant.' Recent intelligence supports that claim."

"If I'm right, there's a vault on Aya that's different." Freddy ignored the implication that the angara had been watching them, not to mention that they could speak their language with only a slight accent. "I need to look inside."

Evfra studied Freddy silently for a long moment before turning and walking over to look out the window. "You're right. There's a 'vault' out there, but it was shut years ago and the entrance hidden." As he spoke, Freddy and Jaal walked over to join him. "We can't help you."

"The Moshae could," Jaal offered. When Freddy looked at him curiously, he explained, "She's our most revered scientist and elder. She knows this vault."

Before Freddy could ask where she is, Evfra countered as he walked away, "But now the kett have her, and our rescue attempts failed. She's lost to us. And you."

"There must be another way." Freddy refused to give up. This was his best chance at making Andromeda a home for the Initiative. "How can I convince you? Can I offer help?"

Scoffing, Evfra turned enough to look back at Freddy as he retorted, "Arrogant. I don't know you, let alone trust you, why would I want _your_ help?"

"Of course." He raised his hands, realizing that he'd overstepped himself. 

As they gazed at each other in a silent standoff, Jaal intervened, "Evfra. I feel... Evfra, what this alien says is extraordinary." Finally, he stowed his sniper rifle on his back. "The Moshae would want us to be brave and not let this chance pass."

"Jaal." Evfra sounded exasperated. "You talk too much."

His voice intent and passionate, Jaal suggested, "Let me assess this alien. I'll be your eyes. I know you can spare me."

"Go if you want," Evfra practically growled at his fellow angara. "But when he tries to kill you, be prepared to strike first."

As he stalked away, clearly done with the conversation, Jaal addressed Freddy. "I'm Jaal Ama Darav. I'll be your envoy through angaran space."

"It's gonna be cozy, so I hope you like people," Freddy warned him, relieved that he'd made some progress, even if it didn't seem like it.

After some confusion about how to greet each other--Freddy thought he felt some sort of pressure against his arm--Jaal said, "I hope I don't regret this."

"Me, too," he agreed with a sheepish laugh. Once Jaal explained the plan, Freddy stifled a groan. _Peebee is going to **kill** me._

*

"I did not like the look of that Archon," Peebee announced when she found Freddy busy in the galley, preparing a meal. He didn't even pause as he chopped up vegetables. "Maybe the angara will let me pitch a tent on Aya for the duration."

That got a reaction out of Freddy, though he only observed in a mild tone, "Didn't think you were the type to run from trouble."

"Well, when you put it _that_ way..." She gave a very put-upon and very fake sigh. "All right. Next time, keep him on the line--I might have something to say."

"Will do." Finished with his chopping, he carried the cutting board to the large pot on the stove and slid the vegetables into it. "So, how do you like the team?"

Perching on the table, Peebee answered, "Interesting bunch. I get a good feeling from Vetra. Not your typical military-minded turian. Liam seems a lively one. I expected he'll surprise me. Drack is... well, old. Wonder if he can still learn new tricks."

"What about--" Freddy started to ask.

Ignoring his statement, she barreled on as she warmed up to her subject. "Gil smacks of complication--might take some unravelling. Kallo and Suvi seem--busy. I hope they aren't all work-work-work." She sighed at the thought, though she had to admit that they had _very_ important jobs on the _Tempest_. "Who's left?"

"Well there's--" Again, he started to speak.

Again, Peebee ignored his attempt and spoke over him. "Oh, right, Cora. What's her deal? Is she as prim and proper as she comes across?"

"Oh, is it my turn to talk?" Freddy asked when she looked at him expectantly.

She was only a little sheepish. "Ha. Sorry, yeah. I should work on my motor."

"You might find that people reveal themselves more freely if you give them a chance," he suggested, and shrugged. "Cora included."

Peebee rolled her eyes. She _knew_ that. "Really good advice."

"There's also Lexi, our doctor." For a moment, Freddy looked disappointed, but it was gone so quickly that she wasn't sure if she saw it. "She's an asari."

She gave an airy wave of her hand, not eager to meet _more_ asari. She grew up around them. "Oh, I'll get around to her. All in all, seems like a decent bunch."

He nodded, turning to stir whatever was in the pot. His back to her, he asked in a carefully neutral voice. "You mentioned you came to Andromeda with someone?"

"Nothing gets by you." Peebee vaguely remembered referring to Kalinda. "Guess that's why you're the Pathfinder. Just a friend. Now she's not even that." Shrugging, she hopped down from the table. _He needs to know before he starts getting ideas._ "It's better to venture into the unknown without restraints or entanglements, don't you think?"

Freddy shrugged as well, picking up a lid and placing it on top of the pot. "I don't know. Don't friends and loved ones make all the effort worthwhile?"

"I've always been self-motivated," she informed him firmly. "Don't need much more than curiosity to drive me."

Plucking the hand towel from his shoulder, he wiped his hands on it. "Well, yeah, but knowing there's friends and family waiting for me motivates me to stay alive so I can return to them."

"Whatever keeps you alive and going out there, Ryder." Taking the other end of the hand towel, Peebee used it to wipe the corner of his mouth. "You missed a spot."

Freddy held still, violet eyes intent on hers. "Thanks, Peebee."

"Yeah, sure." Clearing her throat, she dropped the towel and quickly left the galley. Her steps faltered on the ladder to the upper deck when she realized that she felt a distinct pull back the way she'd come. _Nope! Not again!_

*

"Hey, Peebee--" Freddy barely got the words out before she wagged a finger in his face.

Scowling playfully, she told him, "Nuh-uh-uh, no peeking. I'm putting the finishing touches on my personal project."

"I thought you said it was on the Nexus?" He was almost certain that's what she'd said.

Giving an exasperated sigh, she explained with exaggerated patience, "I'm just perfecting the final component here. Or should I say, trying to?"

"What do you mean?" Freddy was confused. He'd tried to give her space.

Sighing again, Peebee informed him, "Several of the crew have offered to help and I keep politely declining and ushering them out. So, thank you for retrieving that critical piece of rem-tech, but kindly _stop digging_."

"Fine, have your surprise," he conceded to her in their silent struggle over information about this personal project of hers.

Looking satisfied, she assured him, "You won't regret it,"

"Want me to ask the others to back off?" Freddy offered, figuring he may as well take advantage of the fact that he was Pathfinder in other ways.

Peebee shook her head. "No, no, I can handle it. As long as they're not looking to be besties." He nodded, remembering what she'd said about no restraints or entanglements. "And I'm happy that some with the galaxy at his fingertips can still give a girl her space. It's safe to say that _you_ , my friend, are one-of-a-kind."

"You've only scratched the surface," he reminded her with a flirtatious wink. "You have no idea what all I can do."

She smirked. "No, but I have an active imagination." Winking, she added, "I look forward to being educated." Before he could offer to 'educate' her now, she hurried on, "But no more distractions. The next time you're on the Nexus, my project will be done. Come by and I'll unveil it. Now, if you will, please leave me to my own devices."

"Of course, Peebee." Freddy lightly punched her arm. Chuckling, she returned the gesture and he left her alone.

*

"No! Wait!" Jaal shouted as Peebee and Freddy rushed into the room after him. "Save the angara! Be careful! Don't kill him!"

Peebee wasn't sure how Freddy managed to make his shout over the sound of shooting and fighting. "Jaal, he's shooting at us!"

"Sorry, Jaal, we'll get these kett bastards, I promise!" Peebee added her own apologies as she shot at the newly-transformed kett.

As they continued fighting, reluctantly killing the kett, Jaal practically howled, "Monsters! Villains! Time to die!"

"Couldn't have said it better myself!" Peebee exclaimed her agreement, just as Freddy propelled himself through the air in a blur of biotics to smash into the kett that had injected the angara.

Stabbing the kett with his omni-blade, Freddy straightened up to take a quick look around the room. "Got 'em all. Okay. Everyone good? Now--" He paused to take a ragged breath. "What the hell was all that?!"

"Okay, that was _beyond_ messed up," Peebee replied shaking her head in disbelief at what they'd just seen, her attention drawn to Jaal as he stumbled towards the fallen kett.

Freddy made an annoyed sound. "I've seen some serious crap, but this is straight-up evil." He moved to Jaal's side as he knelt beside the kett. Freddy rested his hand on Jaal's broad shoulder, his voice gentle and sympathetic. "Jaal."

"They are us." Jaal gave in to tears and wept.

Reluctant to intrude, Peebee whispered to Freddy, "The Moshae..." She hesitated and glanced around. "I'll keep scanning for her--it looks like there were other rooms like this."

"We'd better find her fast," Freddy agreed with a nod, offering her a grateful smile.

Nodding, Peebee set off to do that, glad to have something productive to do. She'd never been good around upset people. Freddy, on the other hand, crouched beside Jaal as the latter asked, "How many have I killed, not knowing? Ryder, I did not know."

"How can I help?" Freddy asked, his voice still gentle. "What do you need?"

After a moment, Jaal composed himself enough to reply, "That is kind. I...don't know."

"Well, then, let's start by finding the Moshae," Freddy suggested and, out of the corner of her eye, Peebee saw them straighten up to their full heights. "If anyone can figure out what this means for the angara, I'm guessing it's her."

Peebee didn't catch Jaal's reply, because her scanner pinged. "Ryder! Jaal! She's here, hurry!" She watched the angaran woman slowly dropped down to the ground. Hearing footsteps, she turned to urge them as they hurried over. "C'mon, c'mon!"

"SAM! Get me into that room now!" Freddy ordered, stern and determined once more.

As the AI began bypassing the decontamination protocol, Peebee firmly pushed aside the fact that she found him attractive either way. _This is **not** the time to think about that!_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The 'pull' Peebee feels towards Freddy is how asari match. She's not happy about it because of what happened with Kalinda. She knows Freddy's different, but she resists anyway because she's Peebee.


	3. Making Progress

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The Moshae shows Freddy the vault on Aya and Peebee shows him her secret project.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> We've progressed to the start of Peebee's romance. She has to make things difficult, but she has good reasons for it.

"When you're ready, we can take a shuttle to the vault." The Moshae told Freddy once they'd been properly welcomed to Aya.

Freddy nodded, and glanced back at his crew. Every last one stared around them with wide eyes. One in particular caught his attention and he turned back to the Moshae. "Do you mind if Peebee comes with us? She's been studying the Remnant, too."

"Of course. She's welcome to come." The Moshae seemed amused as she glanced at the asari.

After he thanked her, the Moshae walked carefully over to the waiting shuttle. Freddy headed over to Peebee, who looked like a kid in a candy store who didn't know where to start. "Peebee?"

"Ryder! Are you going to the vault?" Gold eyes bright with eagerness, Peebee bounced on the balls of her feet. "Take lots of scans for me."

He grinned and said, "I'll do better than that. How'd you like to come with us?"

"You mean it?" A grin to match his spread across her face.

Freddy nodded, pleased that he'd thought to ask her along. "The Moshae said you're welcome to join us." He offered her his arm. "Shall we?"

"Oh, yes." Peebee didn't take his arm, but she eagerly walked along beside him to the shuttle.

Upon reaching it, they climbed aboard and settled into seats opposite the Moshae and buckled in. "Moshae, I'm sure you remember Peebee."

"It's good to see you doing better, Moshae." Peebee greeted her with a warm smile.

The Moshae's return smile was just as warm. "Thank you for helping to rescue me. Ryder told me that you also study the Remnant, as your people call it?"

"Yeah, but I haven't been at it nearly as long as you have," Peebee responded, looking a little disappointed. "The vault on Eos were amazing and I can't wait to see one that's been functional."

Smiling, Freddy bumped Peebee's shoulder with his. "We wouldn't have made the progress that we had without your groundwork."

"Stop buttering me up, Ryder," she retorted, bumping his shoulder back. "You'll find out about my secret project when we get to the Nexus."

They arrived at the vault after a few minutes of comfortable silence. As they walked in, the Moshae commented, "I haven't brought anyone here in over twenty years."

"It's incredible!" Peebee observed with delight, looking around with wide eyes.

They followed the Moshae over to a familiar console. "There's always been an active display for Aya, but we could never affect it."

"Let's see what we can do," Freddy moved forward and placed his hand over the console, just as he did on Eos. "SAM?"

Both Peebee and the Moshae gasped when it activated a very familiar star map that filled the space above their heads. "Yes, this is new--is it similar to the vault on Eos? Tell me, what are you seeing?"

"It matches what we saw," Peebee replied before Freddy could, glancing between her omni-tool and the display. "Except--"

Freddy had spotted it already and they pointed at the same symbol. "This." He winked at Peebee, and then looked at the Moshae. "What do _you_ see?"

"The vaults--they're a network, as you discovered, however--" the Moshae began, and then glanced expectantly at Freddy.

Nodding, he indicated the unusual symbol, his heartbeat racing at what this could mean. "--they're not connected to each other, but to this place."

"This image was on a relic the Archon showed me," the Moshae told them, looking solemn. "He called it Meridian."

Gazing up at the image, her omni-tool disappearing, Peebee commented, "It looks like Aya's vault is the only one that's fully connected to it."

"--and it's terraforming, doing what it's meant to do," Freddy finished the thought, smiling at the thought that they'd found a solution to the Initiative's need for golden worlds.

SAM chimed in then, startling both the Moshae and Peebee, "The vault on Eos is also present, but changed. Our interfacing with it has affected its connection."

"What about Voeld?" Peebee wondered, staring up at the map. "It's been a bit since we reset that vault, hasn't it?"

Another endpoint lit up. "You are correct, Peebee. It shows some change as well."

"What do you think, professor?" Freddy asked the Moshae.

She answered without hesitation, as if she'd already reached her conclusion. "I think that Meridian is the control center for all the vaults."

"This discovery might just change everything," Freddy told them, suppressed excitement in his voice. "If we can get to Meridian, maybe we can turn everything on from there." He looked from the Moshae to Peebee. "Make Heleus live."

Peebee tapped her chin with one finger, looking dubious. "How are you going to find it, Ryder? This is just a map of the network of vaults."

"The Archon knows where it is," the Moshae told them, her voice quiet and pained. "He's already been there."

Freddy turned towards the Moshae, stunned. "To Meridian? You're sure?"

"Of course, that's why he tortured me." She shuddered and Freddy reached out to squeeze her arm sympathetically. "He thought I could help him use it."

"Because he can't," Peebee finished the thought, wrapping her arms across her waist, looking unsettled for the first time since Freddy met her.

Resting a hand on Peebee's shoulder, Freddy held the Moshae's gaze. "Meridian is our people's best chance for survival. We have to take it from him."

"Agreed." The Moshae nodded, her gaze encompassing both of them. "Such power in the hands of such evil could mean the end of your people--and mine."

"No one is safe as long as he's on this hunt." Despite his bold words, Freddy felt a little uncertain as he made his declaration, "I'm going to shut it down--for all our sakes."

Dropping his hand form Peebee's shoulder, Freddy stepped forward and lifted his hand so SAM could make a copy of the map. As he worked, the Moshae told Freddy, "You're going to need that relic I saw. The Resistance might have intel on the whereabouts of the Archon's ship."

"I'll meet you at the Resistance headquarters," Freddy assured her, turning and clasping his hands behind his back now that SAM had the map.

Nodding, the Moshae led them from the vault.

*

"Ta-da! My project, she is complete." Peebee couldn't resist showing off a little when Freddy arrived at her apartment.

Looking amused, Freddy asked, "She?"

"Looks like a she to me," she countered with a shrug. "Just a proof of concept. I stripped out its Remnant command prompts to see if I could power it up myself." She couldn't stop a grin as she continued, "It worked! Now I can build a field model with combat protocols that fights for you." Realizing she wound down with a question, "So... uh... what do you think?"

His amused smile morphing into a grin, he told her, "You've outdone yourself, Peebee. Let Suvi and Gil eyeball it, then fast-track a combat model for me."

"I'd hoped you'd be happy." The sound of the door opening caught her attention and she stifled a groan. "Oh, no. I forgot to lock the... shit."

Peebee's good mood evaporated as Kalinda strolled in, a smug smirk on her face. "My, my, Pelessaria. Didn't know you were still using this hole. Who's your friend?"

"Kalinda, this is Ryder--" Peebee really wished Kalinda hadn't used her full first name.

Not surprisingly, Kalinda interrupted her introduction. "Oh, everyone knows the human Pathfinder. I meant who's your Remnant friend?"

"None of your business, Kalinda," she snapped, wishing she'd just go away.

Her ex-lover's smug smirk didn't fade in the face of Peebee's hostility. "Of course it isn't--that's what makes it interesting. Don't be so hostile, babe."

"Don't be so condescending, babe," Freddy interrupted before their conversation could devolve into an argument, again. "This is Peebee's place and you're trespassing. I'd say that warrants a little hostility."

Kalinda maintained her poise, not that Peebee had expected anything less of her. She'd liked that about Kalinda at first. Now it just annoyed her. "Now, now. I was just concerned something might have happened to my dear old friend." She couldn't stifle a scoff of disbelief. "I'm sorry for the intrusion, Pelessaria. I'm just relieved to see you... moving on. Ta-ta."

"I'll walk you out," Freddy gestured for Kalinda to precede him while Peebee turned to begin pacing the room. _Dammit, and I'd hoped we could have a little 'fun'. So much for that idea._

Freddy returned moments later. "So, want to talk about it?"

"Oh, Kalinda and I go way back: we joined the Initiative together." She resigned herself to telling him more than she'd wanted to about herself. "For a long time, we were like family. Now we're not." She affected an airy tone. "When you live a thousand years, Ryder, people come and people go. Entanglements are silly. Just like places. Time to pack this one up. I'm done with it."

Looking concerned, Freddy reached out to squeeze her arm comfortingly. "Hey, I hope you know you can talk to me. Anytime."

"Aren't you a cutie?" Peebee grinned to hide how touched she was by his offer. "Thanks, Ryder. That's nice. I mean it." She cleared her throat. "But really, the past is the past. I'm fine."

Freddy nodded, dropping his hand. "Right. I'll leave you to it, then."

"See you back on the _Tempest_!" Once he left, she made sure to lock the door before beginning to gather her things together, inwardly cursing herself for not remembering to do it before and Kalinda for taking advantage of that fact.

*

"Hey, Peebee." Freddy poked his head into her 'bedroom' to find it full of more things than before, including the Observer. "How goes it?"

Peebee turned to him, looking worried and disturbed. "Ryder, exaltation? I never imagined we were fighting angara."

"It kills me to think about it," he confided, remembering how Jaal had wept over the angara-turned-kett they'd had to kill.

She set her jaw, clearly determined. "We _have_ to stop the Archon, whatever he's up to. The more we learn, the more I realize how much bigger than me this all is. It's humbling."

"Agreed." Freddy made a point of looking around the room. "I take it you moved your stuff over from the Nexus?"

Nodding, Peebee glanced around the room, her determination turning into a wry smile. "Yeah, my squatter's paradise is all the more cluttered. What's up?"

"Is there more about Kalinda you want to share?" He tried to keep his voice neutral as he leaned back against the bulkhead beside the door.

She sighed, making a face. "Back home, she was upper crust: an ambassador, respected, living the high life. But miserable. Not built for royalty, she said." She fidgeted with a few things on her 'desk'. "With her position, the Initiative sought her out as a first-contact specialist. First wave out of stasis. Kalinda was the one who got me thawed out early." He nodded, having suspected as much. Catching his nod, she offered him a tiny smile before continuing, "I'm still grateful for that. But things went south soon. She hurt me--pretty badly."

"What happened?" Freddy asked, keeping his voice quiet and gentle, grateful for this little glimpse under her blasé shell.

Waving a hand, Peebee airily replied, "Oh, let's not drum up _that_ sob story. It's all water under the bridge."

"If that's what you want..." he trailed off inquiringly.

She nodded firmly. "It is."

"Have to admit." Freddy decided it was time to change the subject. "When you invited me to your apartment, I thought you might be luring me there for... something else."

Peebee gave him a playfully arch look. "You thought or you hoped?"

"I might have been hoping," he admitted with a flirtatious wink.

She smiled sadly. "That hope had crossed my mind as well. If Kalinda hadn't intruded, who knows _what_ might have happened?"

"Who knows?" Freddy agreed a little wistfully.

As he straightened up, preparing to leave, Peebee's biotics caught his arm. When he looked at her curiously, she said, "Ryder, you look like shit again."

"It's nothing." He tried to brush off her concern, secretly touched that she'd noticed, again.

She shook her head. "It's not nothing. If I didn't know better, I'd say you've been crying."

"Well, I _was_ crying." Freddy decided it was best to admit as much. "I miss my sister. She's been my best friend since we were born."

Peebee's biotics released his arm. "Oh, right. She's still in a coma, right?"

"Yeah." He hated how hoarse his voice sounded. "Harry and Lexi still don't know when she'll wake up."

She tilted her head curiously. "Who's Harry?"

"Dr. Harry Carlyle, the _Hyperion's_ CMO." Freddy rubbed his eyes. "I'm gonna go sleep until we get to Aya."

After a moment, Peebee nodded. "All right. See you there."

"See you." After leaving her room, he slid down the ladder to the lower deck and ducked into his quarters. Finally alone, he felt tears sting his eyes again. Stripping down to his underwear, he curled up under the covers and closed his eyes, trying to remember his mother's face and voice in his father's memory that SAM had shown him on the _Hyperion_. _Fuck, I miss her and Dad so much. Especially with Terry still in a coma._

*

"Hey, Ryder." Peebee waved as Freddy joined her in Aya's museum. Over his shoulder, she spotted Suvi talking with the angaran woman apparently in charge of the museum.

He waved back, looking amused. "Getting acquainted with our new neighbors?"

"Sort of. All this... stuff." Why was it suddenly hard for her to think? "The angara sure do have a rich culture and blah blah blah, pbbbt."

He laughed when she ended with a raspberry, violet eyes twinkling with amusement. "You're sauced, aren't you? What's your poison?"

"Yeeeaaah." Now that he'd pointed it out, Peebee could tell that she was drunk. "I visited the café the angara consider a bar. Asked for their hardest stuff. It was weird, which I like, but had almost no--" she paused to hiccup "--punch. Lightweights!" She felt herself listing to one side and put out a hand to try to steady herself. "Whoa..."

Freddy caught her hand, helping her stay upright. "Steady now."

"That stuff must have a slow absorption rate," she mused, feeling very lightheaded now. Maybe she shouldn't have had so many. "Whoops." Thinking about the drinks reminded her why she'd had them in the first place. "Oh, Ryder, it's just--this museum reminds me of being on Hyetiana during my indentured service as a student." She gestured wildly with her free hand to indicate the displays around them. "They even have a whole section on the Remnant. I didn't come all the way to Andromeda to follow in someone else's footsteps."

He squeezed her hand reassuringly. "Don't worry, Peebee, the angara barely have a foothold. Sure they live among the ruins, but they haven't seen what we've _already_ seen."

"Hmm, you may have a point there." Peebee hadn't considered that fact herself. Thinking back on what they'd done, she told him, "Bet nobody here has ever outrun an ancient vault purification field, huh?"

Freddy shook his head as she hiccupped. "Nope."

"Or spat in the Archon's ugly mug and lived to talk about it?" She warmed to her subject now, smiling nostalgically. " _That_ was nice work, by the way."

He inclined his head slightly, still smiling. "Thank you."

"Ah, you're right." Peebee sighed and shook her head slightly. It made the room spin around her and she gripped Freddy's hand even tighter to help keep herself steady. "Not sure why, but ever since I packed up my apartment on the Nexus, something's crawled under my skin." She'd been restless and not even drinking had made the feeling go away. "But _whatever_ it is, I promise: I'll get over it, lickety-split."

Stepping closer, Freddy tightened his grip on her hand in return. "You're fine, Peebee. We all need to cut loose once in a while."

"You're _very_ understanding," she informed him, resting her free hand on his waist. "And attractive. Nice combination."

Another hiccup interrupted her and he laughed again. Covering her hand with his and gently removing it, he said, "And _you're_ drunk."

"Think I'll stay in your operation a little while longer." Peebee tipped forward to rest her head on his shoulder.

Freddy wound his arms around her waist, his voice almost too soft for her to hear. "Glad to hear it, Peebs."

She let out a deep sigh, savoring this moment. _Why didn't I meet him **before** we came to Andromeda?  
_

*

"Peebee?" Freddy asked, alerted by SAM's report that she seemed to be very agitated.

She must have forgotten to lock the door, because it slid open after a moment. He found Peebee pacing her tiny room, muttering to herself, "...come on, think... _think_. I need... something!"

"Who are you talking to?" He asked her, more to announce his presence than anything else.

Apparently, she hadn't noticed his arrival, because she startled away from him at his question. "Ryder, shit, you shouldn't sneak up on someone like that. I'm just... talking to myself. Don't tell me you never do that."

"You seem stressed," Freddy pointed out, for lack of anything else to say as he stepped further into the room so the door closed behind him.

Peebee continued to pace as she talked, "No kidding. I'm not built for this kind of... homesteading. Don't like people knowing where I am, where my stuff is… arghh!"

"You've got to relax," he told her once her words and pacing stopped for a moment. "You're starting to stress _me_ out."

She glowered at him for that one. "I'd like to. I need to, yes." After a long sigh, she revealed, "When I felt like this back home, I'd look for a zero-G chamber or at least an isolation tank." Looking down, she finished quietly, "Someplace to just drift away. I could really use that now."

"If I may," SAM piped up. "Gravity can be overridden in the escape pod. You can create a zero-G chamber."

A smile lit Peebee's face. "Of course! SAM, you're a genius!" She wasted no time clambering into the escape pod. "It's easy. It'll make a huge difference, Ryder, you'll see." When he hesitated at the hatch, she gave him a playful smile. "You know, there's... room for two."

"That's all I need to hear." Freddy grinned and climbed into the pod.

She turned to the controls as the hatch slid shut behind him. "And... this... should... do it." A deep, satisfied sigh escaped her as she leaned back into the sudden weightlessness. "Close your eyes... relax... let yourself go." He kept his eyes open and focused on her as they slid past each other in the air, admiring the sudden looseness in her. "Oh, this hits the spot." As he floated along the ceiling, she opened her eyes to look at him with a wily smile. "You know, there's something else that would relax me."

"What's that?" He had a fairly good idea of what she meant, but he'd learned _never_ to make assumptions when it came to matters of sex.

Peebee smiled as they slowly orbited around each other in a tight circle. "That's the spirit. Wanna fool around? Doesn't matter if you have something else going on. I can be utterly discreet." He wasn't surprised by her attitude. A few of the asari maidens he'd known in the Milky Way had been very casual about sexual relationships. "Just fun. Two people blowing off steam. No strings attached. _Only_ if there's no strings."

"That'll be fun." Freddy smiled enthusiastically in reply. He'd been celibate since he woke up from cryo-sleep and, quite frankly, he _missed_ sex. Masturbation only helped so much.

Her smile brightening, she told him, "Okay, then. Say no more."

"Oh, you mean now? Here?" He glanced around them as she wrapped her arms around his shoulders, drawing them closer together.

Rolling her eyes, Peebee asked, "You _do_ know what 'say no more' means, right?"

"Whoa..." Anything else Freddy might have said was cut off by Peebee's hungry kiss. Somehow, she was more _alive_ than any asari he'd kissed before and he liked that.

He wrapped his arms around her, pulling her even closer so their legs tangled together. She giggled as he finally worked his hands under her jacket so he could splay them across her lower back. When they parted to catch their breath, her gold eyes widened as she spotted something over his shoulder. "We're floating right into the--"

"Ouch!" He grimaced as one of the jump seat restraints dug into his back. Pushing off from it so they floated towards the deck, he gave her his best sultry smile. "Who cares...?"

In his distraction, Freddy must have pushed off too hard, because Peebee grimaced when her shoulder smacked against the deck pretty hard. "Ow."

"Ow." He echoed when this bounced them towards the other row of jump seats.

Tilting her head back, Peebee laughed as they slowly floated towards the ceiling. Freddy took advantage of this fact to start kissing and nipping at her neck. Her laughter trailed off into breathy moans. Tugging at his tank top, she asked, "No strings, right, Ryder?"

"No strings," he whispered in agreement as he let her pull his tank top off over his head.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yes, I had Peebee join Freddy and the Moshae, because I could. I'd tried to hint before that Freddy is more open to casual sex than Terry, for what I hope are obvious reasons, and wanted to carry that over here.


	4. On Kadara

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Enter Reyes Vidal and the complication of Freddy's personal life.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is when quite a few scenes will seem familiar, not just because they're from the game.

"Hey!" Umi's exclamation greeted Reyes when he entered Kralla's Song.

He paused by the partition as a krogan waved dismissively. "Piss off."

"You order, you pay." Not surprisingly, Umi was undeterred.

"I said--" the krogan thought better of blowing her off when she stabbed the bar.

As he paid and wandered off, Reyes finally approached the human man leaning casually against the bar, charming smile firmly in place. "You look like you're waiting for someone."

He held up two fingers and Umi placed two cups on the bar. Picking them up, Reyes offered one to Ryder. He accepted the cup with a familiar smile. "I've got time for a drink."

Once they'd taken sips, he told him, "Shena, but you can call me Reyes. I hate code names."

"Freddy Ryder. I was expecting someone more... angaran." Freddy shook his hand.

"The Resistance pays me to supply information--among other things." He winked, letting him draw his own conclusions.

For some reason, Freddy drew in a sharp breath, surprise flashing briefly in his eyes. Whatever the reason for it, he recovered quickly and only stated in a neutral voice, "So you're a smuggler."

Reyes tilted his head and led them over to the window, looking out at the inhospitable yet lovely landscape of Kadara. "Your man--Vehn Terev, was arrested by Sloane Kelly, leader of the Outcasts. Word spread about what he did to Moshae Sjefa."

"Well, shit," Freddy muttered, leaning back against the post between windows, arms folded across his chest. "What does Sloane plan to do with him?"

"The people are calling for his execution," Reyes told him with a sigh, wishing he had better news. "And Sloane, she's a woman of the people."

Shaking his head, Freddy muttered, "Of course she is. A place like this, she _has_ to keep her people happy, otherwise they'd turn on her."

"You work for the Initiative," Reyes glanced at him, still trying to figure out why he looked familiar. "Sloane was part of the uprising on the Nexus. I doubt she'll give Vehn up easily."

Freddy let out a gusty sigh. "I guessed she'd been part of the mutiny. It'll probably be worse here because she'll have the advantage and she'll _know_ it."

"Sadly true, yes," Reyes agreed, a little surprised that Freddy had cut straight to the crux of the matter so quickly.

Straightening up, Freddy stated firmly, "I'm taking Terev, with or without her permission."

"We're gonna be friends, you and I," Reyes told him with a grin. _This may be **just** the opening the Charlatan needs._ "There might be another way to get to Vehn. You work Sloane. I'll talk to the Resistance."

With that, he straightened up as well and headed to the door. After a few paces, Freddy asked, "How do I contact you if things go south?"

Smiling, Reyes just winked and continued from the bar. Just as the door closed behind him, he heard Umi: "Hey! You gotta pay!"

*

"You sure this guy is reliable?" Drack asked suspiciously as they picked their way from the lift to the slums below Kadara Port.

Freddy nodded, not looking back at either of them. "I'm sure. I met him back in the Milky Way, before we shipped out."

"Does he remember you?" Peebee queried, curious.

A shrug. "Dunno. He didn't indicate, but neither did I."

A short while later, a handsome human man looked up with a smile when the trio entered the private room at Tartarus. A little older than Freddy with sleek black hair, hazel eyes, and tan skin, he greeted them with a nod. "Pathfinder, I got word from my colleagues. Vehn Terev made it off Kadara. He's a free man--thanks to you."

"You helped. A little," Freddy replied, and then indicated them with a wave of his hand. "Drack, Peebee, this is Reyes."

Drack grunted while Peebee waved at him with a grin and a wink. Much to her delight, Reyes waved and winked back at her. "Always nice to be recognized. Did you hear about the murders?"

"There's a fresh body outside Kralla's," Freddy countered, his voice serious. "Some of the locals say it's the Charlatan's handiwork."

Reyes shook his head, looking very certain. "I don't buy it. The Charlatan is discreet, careful. Whoever did this _wanted_ the bodies found."

"Making a statement," Freddy offered, arms folded across his chest, fingers drumming against his armor.

Reyes spread his hands out and asked, "But to who?"

"The killer could be unhappy with how Sloane's running things," Peebee offered, shifting her weight restlessly. She saw the Remnant as they landed at Kadara Port. They needed to get out there and start exploring.

In reply, Reyes shook his head. "Less than a third of the victims are Outcasts. No, if I was a betting man--and I am--I'd say it was the Roekaar."

"Why would Roekaar be in Kadara Port?' Freddy wondered, dropping his arms. Then he snapped his fingers, "Wait, it's angaran-built and, before Sloane, probably anagaran-run."

Reyes added, with a nod to confirm Freddy's statement, "I think the Roekaar came looking for recruits and things got out of hand."

"What about the angaran victims?" Drack asked, taking a step forward. "Why would they kill their own people?"

"I did some digging," Reyes confided after a surprised glance at Drack. "All of the deceased angara were public Milky Way sympathizers."

Peebee winced at that while Freddy began, "So the victims were either _from_ the Milky Way--"

"Or supported us." Reyes shrugged. "It was the only pattern I could find."

Freddy nodded his agreement, sounding worried. "An angaran port run by aliens would be a prime target for their cause."

"Problem is, I've got no proof," Reyes admitted, tapping his fingers on his knee for a moment. "And the Resistance doesn't want to antagonize the Roekaar."

Freddy sighed. "I'm guessing that's where I come in."

"I need that fancy AI of yours to scan for evidence that could implicate the Roekaar," Reyes explained with a tilt of his head. "People are scared, Pyder. This is your opportunity to win friends in Kadara Port."

Freddy nodded and Peebee could easily picture the playful smirk on his handsome face. "I sound pretty integral to this plan."

"SAM is integral," Reyes countered with a teasing smirk of his own. "You're a bonus."

She rolled her eyes when Freddy objected, "Hey, I haven't agreed to help you yet."

"I feel good about my chances," Reyes responded, his eyes intent on Freddy. "One of the crime scenes isn't far. Give me a call when you get there."

Both men tapped their omni-tools and Freddy took a step back. "I better get going."

"Ryder." Reyes' serious tone stopped them all in their tracks.

Tilting his head, Freddy asked curiously, "Yeah?"

"Don't take this the wrong way, but..." he hesitated a moment before continuing with his statement. "You're not really liked here. In Kadara Port."

Freddy pressed his hand to his chest in an exaggerated gesture. "Ouch."

"What I'm saying is: you need a friend." It sounded like Reyes had rehearsed this speech. "Someone on the inside to help you out. I can be that guy. You need intel on exiles, Sloane, whatever-- come to me."

Freddy nodded. "Thanks, I think."

"Talk to you soon," Reyes told him with a small smile.

Peebee stifled a giggle as they left Tartarus. _They were **totally** flirting with each other! Bet Freddy didn't even realize it!_

*

"Reyes should be here," Freddy stated when they entered the Roekaar hideout to find the front empty of anyone.

Her voice playful, Peebee asked, "You like him, don't you?"

"That's not--" Freddy started as he turned towards her, catching sight of a grin and a wink. He hadn't even _realized_ he'd been flirting with Reyes in front of her! Not that she seemed to mind, going by her expression.

Armored angara entered from the opposite door before Freddy could finish, aiming weapons at them. "Don't move!"

"Were we too loud?" Freddy cocked his head with feigned innocence even as they raised their hands to show that they weren't reaching for their own weapons.

"Shut up." Clearly, these were the Roekaar they were looking for. "Farah will deal with you."

They were marched further into the cave system once they were disarmed. Freddy's heart sank at the sight of so many angara who were opposed to aliens simply because of their horrible experiences with the kett. A green-skinned angaran woman marched up to them, glaring. "I don't need to tell you what happens next."

"You're going to try to kill me and my friends," Freddy answered matter-of-factly, keeping his voice calm and steady. "I have a few questions first."

She shook her head, slicing the air with a knife she drew from inside her armor. "No! You'll bleed. Just like the others."

"So it's true." Freddy recognized the knife. It looked just like the one they'd found at the murder scene. "You murdered innocent people."

She stalked forward, angry, practically spitting her words. "Invaders and sympathizers are _not_ innocent. I will protect my home."

"Don't let your hate poison you," Freddy urged her, still hoping to defuse the situation and keep it from coming down to a fight. "We can coexist."

Her answer was skeptical, not that he blamed her. "Like here on Kadara? Sloane lies to my people and uses them for power."

"I'm not Sloane," Freddy countered, his voice still calm and steady.

She narrowed her eyes at him. "You are all the same."

Just as she raised the knife, a shot rang out, knocking it out of her hand. A clatter of booted footsteps on metal stairs preceded Reyes' appearance. He dropped to one knee slightly in front of Freddy, his rifle pointed at Farah. "Not so fast."

"You're late," Freddy told him, mock-glaring at him.

Reyes kept his eyes on Farah. "I've got a good reason. You'll see in three..."

"Don't just _stand_ there!" Farah yelled at her followers.

"Two..."

"Kill them!"

A crate near the middle of the group exploded, burning the closest angara and knocking the ones closest to them off their feet. Freddy instinctively ducked to avoid flying debris even though his shields would have protected him. "Still mad?"

Freddy dove for his rifle, bringing it up to begin shooting angara. He was peripherally aware that Drack and Peebee had grabbed their weapons as well, adding their firepower to his. Noticing that Farah had retreated behind a stack of crates, he launched himself at her with his biotics. Crashing through the crates and into her, he extended the blade attachment on his rifle and slammed it into her chest. Taking a moment to catch his breath, he noticed that silence had fallen. "Sound off!"

"Still alive," Drack replied, sounding pleased. "Damn good fighting."

"Still here!" Peebee chimed in, crouching nearby.

Reyes joined them, holding a datapad. "I'd say _this_ is pretty conclusive proof that the Roekaar are behind the murders."

"Today, I witness one of our own flirting with that disgusting blue bartender at port," Freddy read, taking the datapad from Reyes. "It took all of my self control not to slice him open until he stumbled outside the bar."

Peebee sighed. "That's probably the one from earlier."

"Once we have enough recruits, the entire planet needs to be cleansed of alien scum and their sympathizers," Freddy finished reading. Shaking his head, he activated his omni-tool. "SAM?"

His tone pedantic, SAM told him, "I have downloaded the entire contents of her log. Multiple entries reference killing 'alien scum' or sympathizers."

"The streets of Kadara are safe again," Reyes observed, sounding pleased as they left the Roekaar hideout. "You did good, Ryder." He winked. "Don't worry, I'll let all the important people know who to thank."

Returning the wink, Freddy told him, "We make a good team."

"Careful--I'll start thinking you like me," Reyes told him with a sly smile and a question in his hazel eyes.

Freddy offered a smile and a slight nod in return. "Would that be so bad?"

"Depends." Reyes winked. "Don't be a stranger." He glanced at Peebee and Drack. "Any of you."

Peebee giggled once he was gone. "Did you know him or _know_ him back in the Milky Way?"

"We _knew_ each other," Freddy admitted as they climbed into the Nomad, resigned to telling her. "One last fling before we shipped out. I had no idea that he was part of the Initiative, too. We didn't even share names."

Peebee grinned and patted his shoulder. "I don't blame you. He's gorgeous."

"It's getting late. Are we going to sleep on the _Tempest_?" Drack asked, settling into his seat with a grunt.

Sighing, Freddy started the Nomad and turned it towards Kadara Port. "On the _Tempest_. I don't trust anyone in Kadara Port."

"Except Reyes?"

"Maybe."

*

Reyes raised his eyebrows when Freddy joined him at Tartarus, still in his armor, but alone. "Ryder, where are your friends?"

"I sent them to the _Tempest_ ahead of me." Freddy sat down in the chair Reyes indicated.

He smirked. "I'm flattered you chose to join me."

"I missed the pleasure of your company." Freddy winked. "I couldn't help noticing the gang war between the Collective and the Outcasts."

Amused by the obvious ploy for information, Reyes decided to humor him. "Not everyone's happy living under Sloane's thumb. Whatever resources Kadara has goes to the Outcasts. The rest of us get scraps. The Collective claims to be different, but it's hard to trust a faceless leader."

"Especially with a title like the 'Charlatan,'" Freddy pointed out, violet eyes dancing with amusement.

Chuckling, Reyes told him, "Have to admit--I'm jealous. That's a better nickname than 'Shena.'" And he'd had just as much choice over it.

"Any idea where the Collective operates?" Freddy asked, intrigued.

Reyes smiled, hoping this meant that he was interested in contacting them. "Rumor has it they have a swanky hideout in one of the caves in Draullir. I've never seen it myself."

"Speaking of your code name--" Freddy gave him an arch look. "What does 'Shena' mean? Or _does_ it mean anything?"

He smiled sheepishly. "It's the angaran word for mouth." A grin slowly curved Freddy's mouth when Reyes took a moment to clear his throat. "I'm good with words."

"'Among other things?'" Freddy asked with a sly tilt of his head and a glint in his eyes that made Reyes' heartbeat accelerate for a moment.

Giving Freddy a sly look of his own, Reyes told him, " _Never_ had a complaint."

"How long have you worked with the Resistance?" Freddy propped his chin on his hand, his gaze intent on Reyes.

He shrugged again. "Few months. When Sloane 'saved' Kadara Port from the kett, Evfra wanted eyes and ears on the ground. Figured people would be more loose-lipped around their own kind." Reyes smirked. "He was right."

"Sloane's tough," Freddy remarked, glancing up at the ceiling, as if in the general direction of Kadara Port. "So are the kett. How'd she take them out?"

Reyes winked. " _Never_ underestimate the element of surprise. The kett weren't ready for an ambush. But they know her tactics now. Next time, Sloane won't be so lucky."

"What about the mutiny on the Nexus?" Freddy asked, turning serious. "Did you play a big part in it?"

Reyes couldn't stop a laugh at the fact that Freddy had assumed _that_. He wasn't the first, to be fair. "I had _nothing_ to do with that shitshow."

"Then why'd you leave?" Freddy looked gratifyingly curious.

Remembering those early days, Reyes explained, "The way Tann handled things didn't exactly inspire confidence. I decided I could do better on my own." He shrugged. "So I jumped ship with the rest of them. Ended up here."

"What about before Andromeda?" Freddy asked, his expression serious.

Clearing his throat, Reyes decided to take a chance. "I didn't know who you were when I picked you up in that shitty bar."

"Wait, I thought _I_ picked _you_ up?" Freddy countered playfully.

Laughing, Reyes said, "Either way, I didn't know who you were."

"Not even after you met my sister?" Freddy looked amused.

Shrugging, he admitted, "I was still a little out of it. Thanks for feeding me, though."

"Of course." Freddy nodded. Clearing his throat, he added, "That was a good night."

Reyes nodded, trying not to think about it too much. "For me, too."

"No complaints here." Winking, Freddy stood up. "I should go."

He stood as well, offering his hand. "I hope to see you again."

"I think you will." Freddy shook his hand. "Good night, Reyes."

"Good night, Ryder."

*

"Hey, Ryder." Peebee smiled when he entered the galley. "Did you give Gil that datapad yet?"

Freddy nodded, moving to the refrigerator. "Yeah. We have a location, but I want to get Kadara sorted out."

"Nothing to do with the fact that Reyes Vidal is here, right?" She asked with a sly smile as he pulled out a container of leftovers.

He sighed, putting the container in the microwave and setting it to warm up. "My flirting with him really didn't bother you, did it?"

"Nope." Peebee shook her head with a cheerful smile. "I told you, Ryder, no strings. I meant it. If you want to start something with Reyes, go ahead. He's attractive, a good shot, and apparently a very good pilot. Don't worry about my feelings."

Freddy nodded, turning to pull the container out of the microwave. "I get it. Just feels rude for me to flirt with him right in front of you."

"If it makes you feel better, I can stay here on the _Tempest_ tomorrow," she offered as he sat down at the table, though part of her didn't like the idea of staying behind. "I can get more work done that way instead of only between planets."

He leaned forward on the table, reaching over to rest his hand on her arm. "If you _want_ to stay on the _Tempest_ , just tell me and I'll ask one of the others."

"I--" Peebee stopped and looked away for a moment. Covering his hand with hers, she quietly told him, "I like going with you, but maybe you should give some of the others time dirtside."

Freddy sounded skeptical. "That's not 'I want to stay on the _Tempest_.'"

Giving an exasperated sigh, she stood up from her seat and rinsed out her empty container. "It's ultimately your choice, Ryder. I'm happy either way."

"Peebee!" Despite his call, she hurried out of the galley.

Pausing in the corridor at the pull she felt to go back, Peebee determinedly ignored it and climbed up the ladder to duck into her 'bedroom'. Floating in zero-G alone wasn't nearly as nice as it used to be.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Peebee is drawn to Freddy, but fighting it. She's happy to push him towards Reyes, though. At least Freddy will be happy.


	5. Orbiting Kadara

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Freddy and Reyes continue to flirt. Peebee still isn't jealous.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Despite the title, they spend part of this chapter traveling from Kadara to the Nexus and back. It's metaphorical orbiting.

"You look like you're waiting for someone," Freddy remarked to Reyes, unable to resist a chance to turn the tables on him.

Reyes was grinning when he turned to address Freddy. "That's my line."

"You want a drink or a room?" Umi asked as Freddy leaned against the bar close enough for his shoulder to brush against Reyes'.

Reyes answered for both of them. "Information, actually."

"That'll cost you more than a round of drinks," she countered, clearly having done this before.

His tone light, Reyes told her, "My friend's good for it."

"I'll expect a favor in return," Freddy warned him playfully.

He smirked at Freddy. "You're one person I'll happily owe something."

"Ugh. What do you want to know?" Umi folded her arms across her chest, clearly done with them already.

His tone brisk, Reyes asked, "Zia Cordier. She been around recently?"

"You mean your ex?" Umi shrugged. "Yeah, she was here."

Freddy glanced back and forth between the other two. "Ex? As in _girlfriend_?"

"Girlfriend's such a strong word," Reyes replied, a little too quickly. "We had drinks occasionally. So..." Stopping, he cleared his throat and looked back at Umi. "She was here?"

Umi nodded, looking just a little smug. "Yeah. Met with a salarian. Shifty guy I'd never seen before. Maybe it was the Charlatan."

"Anything's possible." Reyes shrugged. "You overhear their conversation?"

Another nod. "They were planning to meet someone at Spirits' Ledge."

"Thanks, Umi." Reyes looked satisfied, so Freddy figured he knew where that was.

She scoffed. "Whatever. You didn't hear it from me."

"If you check the meeting spot, I'll follow the Collective lead," Reyes suggested once she'd walked away. "Doubt Zia was meeting the Charlatan, but you never know."

Skeptical, Freddy asked, "Is this job about getting your cargo back or one-upping an ex?"

"Why, Ryder, are you jealous?" Reyes asked, looking sly.

Freddy gave him a distinctly unimpressed look. "Just answer the question."

"It's about the cargo," Reyes told him with a laugh. "I'll work my contacts. You give me a call when you get to the meeting spot."

Nodding, Freddy straightened up and turned to leave, debating who to take with him.

*

Reyes met them at the navpoint Freddy had found, frowning as he turned in place. "It's... empty."

"I guess Zia's buyer already came and went," Freddy told him apologetically.

Reyes' frown didn't fade, realizing he'd been set up. "Or there was _never_ any cargo to begin with."

"Bravo. I knew you'd figure it out eventually." A human woman entered as she spoke, dark red hair cut in a bob, with cruel brown eyes, and a sardonic smirk curling her lips.

His heart sank when he recognized her, exclaiming, "Zia!"

"You could _never_ resist a big payout," she told him, sounding scornful now. He vaguely noticed Vetra and Jaal moving away from him and Freddy.

Reyes smirked right back at Zia, assuming his charming smuggler front. "What can I say? I'm a greedy man."

"That's why you don't have any friends," she shot back, anger flashing in her eyes for a moment. "You're selfish."

Freddy moved to stand shoulder-to-shoulder with Reyes, glaring at Zia. "Reyes is a better man than you think."

"Oh, honey." She laughed off his assertion contemptuously. "You've no idea how wrong you are. But you will."

Reyes glared at her, his voice low and dangerous. "Leave him _out_ of this."

"You must _really_ like this one, Reyes." She wasn't fazed by their combined anger, even chuckling at it!

Unwilling to risk Zia telling Freddy more than she should, Reyes snarled, "Cut the shit! What's this all about?"

"You've been taking _all_ the good jobs in Kadara," Zia replied, turning serious. "It's gotten _more_ than my attention."

Freddy shifted to stand back-to-back with Reyes, their shoulders pressed together, while Reyes demanded, "So what? The local smuggling union got together and decided to take me down?"

"Something like that." She drew her pistol and pointed it at Reyes.

He only squeezed the bridge of his nose and muttered," _Shit_."

"Move in!" All hell broke loose then: other smugglers emerged from hiding and began shooting.

Snatching his rifle from his back, Reyes began shooting at everyone. He could feel Freddy shooting behind him. A biotic shield suddenly rippled into view in front of him. Glancing over his shoulder, he realized it was coming from Freddy. His voice strained, Freddy spoke into the comm in his armor, "Vetra, Jaal, find cover." 

"Ready." Vetra reacted first, folding down below the pile of crates she'd been using as cover.

Jaal dropped to the floor next, "Ready, Ryder."

"Go ahead," Reyes told him quietly, pressing firmly against his back.

With a grunt of effort, Freddy pushed the shield outward, slamming into anyone without cover. Silence descended, leaving Reyes and Freddy as the only ones standing. Gasping for breath, Freddy ordered, "Sound off."

"Sound off what?" Jaal asked, poking his head up above the crates.

Straightening up, Vetra explained, "He wanted to make sure we're still here, Jaal."

"Like roll call," Reyes added. He sighed, his shoulders slumping. "I knew I wasn't popular, but I _never_ thought the other smugglers would team up against me."

"They might try again," Freddy pointed out, finally stowing his shotgun.

Touched by Freddy's concern, Reyes hid it with a chuckle." You worried about me?"

"Reyes." Freddy gave him a steely look that reminded Reyes of Alec Ryder. Not that he'd met the previous Pathfinder more than a handful of times. Still, the resemblance was much more obvious now.

Smiling reassuringly, Reyes told him, " _Relax_. I know they're coming now. They won't get the jump on me again." As they started for the door, he gave a dissatisfied sigh. "All that effort and no credits to show for it."

"Not everything _has_ to be about credits," Freddy told him, leaning on Reyes for support as they walked, clearly drained from using his biotics like that.

He smiled faintly, wishing he could forget about credits and expenses for a little while. "That's true." After a brief pause, he continued, "What you said back there... about me being a better man? Thank you."

"You're welcome." Freddy laughed softly. "It's true, you know."

Reyes laughed, too. Once they reached the door, he sighed. "I should clean up this mess. Zia was a piece of work, but it feels wrong to leave her out in the open."

Though Freddy offered to stay and help, Reyes politely refused and insisted he head back to Kadara Port. Once the Nomad drove off, he sent word out to the Collective to come clean up the mess they'd left.

*

"Whoever the Charlatan is, they're either asari, or thinking like one," Peebee declared once they'd finished in the Collective base and headed back through the cave.

Glancing back at her, Freddy asked, "How do you mean?"

"They're thinking long-term," she explained. "Domesticating the adhi, growing plants, and who knows what else. The way asari think."

While he hummed thoughtfully, Vetra countered, "Asari aren't the only ones who think long-term, Peebee."

"Whoever the Charlatan is, they're thinking longer-term than Sloane," Freddy pointed out, peering around a corner before rounding it fully. "They understand that we need to make Heleus a home."

Peebee rested a hand on his arm, catching his attention. When violet eyes met hers curiously, she said softly, "They're thinking like a Pathfinder."

"Someone had to until Ryder or one of the others showed up," Vetra offered as they emerged from the cave, blinking as their eyes adjusted to the sudden brightness.

Clearing his throat, Freddy pulled up his omni-tool. He'd started keeping a to-do list on it of tasks he wanted to accomplish. "Right, all that's left is follow that lead on Spender and meet the group that tried to hack SAM."

"Which one is closer?" Peebee peered over his shoulder at his omni-tool.

Chuckling, he deactivated his omni-tool and headed to the Nomad. "The lead on Spender."

"Whichever you want to follow first, Pathfinder," Vetra told him as they followed him.

Grinning, Peebee added, "We'll follow whatever path you find, Pathfinder."

"Smartass," Freddy muttered, though a laugh did escape him. Peebee counted it as a win.

*

"Freddy, good, you're here." Harry was always happy to see his godson, but even more so right now. "I heard about an explosion on the Nexus?"

Looking pained, Freddy nodded as he slumped into the chair facing Harry's desk, signing his answer before he said it, "Yeah. We caught the culprit before they could detonate any other explosives. Dunn sent me here."

"Did she brief you?" Harry needed to know how much to explain.

Freddy shrugged. "High level only. Said to speak with you for the full brief."

"Great. Well then, here we go." Harry cleared his throat, keeping his voice low even though they were in his office with the door closed. "Before we left, my medtech Charlie helped his aunt sign on to the Initiative program."

Frowning curiously, Freddy asked, "He cheated the screening process?"

"Yeah." Harry nodded, scrubbing his eyes tiredly. "She has TH-314. Deadly, highly contagious in the latter stages and jumps across species." Freddy grimaced, but signed 'continue'. "It _was_ dormant, but flared up when Charlie woke her. He just assumed it was stasis sickness." He took a deep breath before clarifying why this was such an urgent situation. "There's no cure. No vaccine. It's deadly in its final stage and she's off-grid. She's a problem."

Bracing his elbows on his knees, Freddy leaned forward, violet eyes intent in a way that reminded Harry of both Alec and Ellen. "What should I know about this TH-314?"

"Stage 1 symptoms are similar to stasis sickness, which is what fooled Charlie." Harry knew Freddy would take this seriously _and_ be discreet. "Stage 2 is marked by extreme bouts of paranoia. It becomes virulently contagious at Stage 3. Airborne, the works."

Looking concerned, Freddy hitched his chair closer to the desk so he could brace his arms on it. "Is anyone else infected?"

"No one, so far." He was very grateful for _that_ fact. "According to the test results I received after Charlie left, she's still in Stage 1." He leaned forward on his desk, doing his best to convey the seriousness of the situation. "If she progresses to stage 3... Freddy, it'll be bad. It's a rare disease, but the kind that starts pandemics."

Tilting his head as something Harry said caught his attention, Freddy asked, "Where'd Charlie go if he's not still here?"

"Not long ago, he was assigned to an APEX unit for a mission." Harry wasn't very surprised that Freddy had asked. Family had become more important since they'd woken up in Andromeda. "Incommunicado at the moment." He sighed deeply and sat back. "Charlie had no idea the virus would flare up after stasis. Virology isn't his specialty. She's his only relative. Even so, he should've known better."

Still leaning on the desk, Freddy countered, "We need to help her, you mean."

"Every instinct I have, both medical and human, is screaming at me to help her." Standing up, Harry moved around the desk to sit in the other chair facing it. "Making sure TH-314 doesn't spread is the top priority." He waited for Freddy's eyes to meet his. "No matter what. This one isn't going to be easy."

Nodding, Freddy sat up and reached over to catch Harry's hand and squeeze it. "Anything else I need to know?"

"Be quick, but discreet." A panic would be just as bad as a pandemic. "We can't panic the entire station over this."

Smiling dryly, his godson remarked, "I only have one space station to search. Discreetly. Check."

"Could be worse," Harry reminded him. "She could be off-station and infecting the angara. Try customs first. Even with fake medical clearance, she had to go through there like anyone else."

When his godson stood up to leave, he didn't release his hand. Freddy looked at him curiously, signing 'uncle' before he asked, "Harry?"

"Are you all right, Freddy?" he asked gently. "I'm asking as your godfather, not your physician."

Sighing, Freddy scrubbed his free hand across his eyes. "I saw another of Dad's memories."

"Oh?" Harry wondered how many of Alec's memories he'd wanted Freddy or Terry to see. "What was it this time?"

Slumping back into his chair, Freddy answered in a hoarse voice, "Our family reunion on Earth. You remember it."

"I do." Harry swallowed hard, remembering that day clearly. It'd been the first time Terry and Alec saw each other since she'd tried to come out to him. "You saw Ellen again, didn't you?"

Freddy nodded, clearing his throat a couple times. When he spoke, his voice was still shaky. "Yeah. It was... shit, Uncle Harry. I told you before I can feel Dad's emotions a little." Harry nodded. He remembered that. "When he looked at Terry, I could feel how much he regretted their estrangement and wished to apologize to her."

"He never did, though," he reminded his godson quietly. "Did you feel anything else from him?"

A smile lit Freddy's face despite the tears leaking down his cheeks. "He loved all of us, of course." A wet laugh escaped when Harry rolled his eyes. "He was proud of both Terry and I, of what we'd accomplished."

"Of course he was." Harry stood up to hug Freddy tight. His godson hugged him back, just as tight. "I am, too. We've always been proud of you two and always _will_ be, living or dead."

Pressing their foreheads together, Freddy whispered, "Thanks, Uncle Harry."

"Always, Freddy."

*

"Poc, Poc, Poc, you're gonna be the gateway to so many great things, my friend," Peebee declared to the Observer, turning at the sound of the door opening.

Freddy smiled, violet eyes curious. "Hey there. You named her 'Poc'?"

"Yep: Proof of Concept," she replied, explaining where she'd gotten the name. "To distinguish her from Zap, your souped-up nasty combat version."

His smile widened into a grin. "Zap. I like it."

"Yeah, it's edgy," Peebee agreed with a wink. She looked closer at him. "You look like shit again, by the way."

Freddy gave her a flat look. "I just stopped a bombing on the Nexus and now we're following the trail of a woman who could potentially start a pandemic."

"Fair." Nodding, she let the subject drop. "The storage box from the vault on Eos was the key to everything--including integrating that piece of rem-tech you got me."

He grinned again. "You're welcome."

"Yeah, yeah." Peebee couldn't resist sticking her tongue out at him. "But our new Observer friends are just the beginning. I'm working on something even bigger."

Laughing, Freddy said, "Sure, why stop and smell the roses? Getting Remnant technology to work is so passé."

"I'm not one to rest on my laurels," she reminded him, amused by his sarcasm. "So get this: we can only scan for Remnant signatures we've already encountered. My scanner's doing that around the clock."

He nodded. "Of course it is."

"Smartass." Peebee swatted at him with her biotics, but he only grinned wider. "If I integrate the right rem-tech, we could scour the cluster for _any_ Remnant signature. Even ones we don't have." She finished with a triumphant declaration. "My scanner would literally become a Remnant mystery detector!"

Still grinning, Freddy told her, "Your enthusiasm is infectious."

"Don't tell Lexi," she told him in a stage whisper. "She'll look for a cure." That made him laugh. "I came to Andromeda to touch the unknown. To find the never-before-found. Once I perfect this scanner, it'll do exactly that. All I need is three specific pieces of rem-tech."

An amused chuckle escaped him. "We can do that."

"You. Rock." Peebee longed to pull him into a kiss, but she held herself back, remembering his concern about flirting with Reyes in front of her. It was best to restrain herself until she knew where Freddy and Reyes stood with each other. "Poc and Zap think so too."

Freddy glanced at Poc and nodded slightly to her. "Thanks, Poc." He looked back at Peebee. "I assume you have the location of at least one of these pieces?"

"Yep! So far, I've only located the first piece--it's back on Eos." She knew he'd intended to head back there anyway. "I'll upload the coordinates."

He dipped his head slightly in acknowledgment. "First, we find Ruth Bekker. Then we head back to Kadara and see if there's anything else we can do there. _Then_ we'll head to Eos."

"You're the Pathfinder," Peebee reminded him with a teasing grin. "Your call."

Freddy sighed softly. "Yes, it is." Before she could ask him about that, he lightly punched her arm. "See you, Peebee."

"See you, Ryder."

*

"Damn it," Reyes muttered to himself as he searched the crates in Sloane's storeroom. "Why can't the serial numbers be in the same spot?"

Freddy's voice startled him, reminding him that he still needed to pay attention to his surroundings. "'Take the night off. Come out for a drink.'" Freddy shook his head in fond exasperation. "I should've known you were up to something."

"Ryder. It's not what it looks like." He stood up as Freddy joined him, feeling absurdly like a little boy who'd been caught with his hand in the cookie jar. 

For the first time since they'd met, Freddy looked decidedly indignant. Clearly, he didn't like being used. "So you're not using me as a distraction to go through Sloane's stuff?"

"Okay, yes." Reyes figured a partial truth was better than outright lie. "But it's for both our benefit! I promise!"

"You've been making a lot of promises--" Freddy stopped short when Reyes peered around him towards the open door, catching the sound he should have heard before.

He turned back to Freddy worriedly, trying to think of what to do. "Shit! Someone's coming. We need a distraction."

Before he could think of something besides simply ducking behind a nearby wall, Freddy kissed Reyes, cupping his cheek with one hand. After a brief moment of surprise, Reyes responded eagerly, burying his fingers in Freddy's hair. He was just as delicious as he'd been 600 years and a galaxy ago. Distantly, he heard someone come in. "Oh!" Apparently, Freddy ignored their cleared throat, because he kept kissing Reyes, who was enjoying it far too much to end it just yet. "Sorry."

As the sound of footsteps faded, Reyes reluctantly pulled away to watch. He looked back at Freddy. "I think we're in the clear."

"Maybe another kiss?" Freddy suggested with a playful grin, all anger apparently gone now. "Just to be sure?"

"Now you're just teasing me," Reyes replied with a laugh, licking his lips.

"Perhaps." Freddy smirked, violet eyes darkening as he watched the movement of Reyes' tongue.

Hopping up onto a crate, Reyes dug around in it until he found the bottle he'd been looking for. He held it up triumphantly while exclaiming, "Finally! Here it is."

" _That's_ what this was all about?" Freddy asked incredulously while Reyes lightly jumped down from his precarious perch. "Whiskey?"

"This is the only bottle of Mount Milgrom in Andromeda," Reyes explained, looking scandalized that Freddy didn't understand. "Triple-distilled and 645 years old." He cradled it close. "This isn't whiskey--it's treasure."

Amused, Freddy stepped close, covering Reyes' hand on the bottle with his. "I hope you're planning on sharing."

"We'll see..." Reyes grinned and winked, grasping Freddy's hand. "Let's get out of here."

Still holding hands, they hurried from the Outcast headquarters. As Reyes led Freddy through the port, he tangled their fingers together. Reyes glanced back at him for a moment with a warm smile. He stopped by a ladder and turned to Freddy. He eyed it with some worry. "Reyes?"

"You can see almost all of the port from up there," Reyes explained, squeezing Freddy's hand gently. "Or watch the sun set."

Smiling, he kissed Reyes' cheek before climbing up. After enjoying the view of Freddy's lovely ass, Reyes climbed up and sat down nearby. After a moment, Freddy murmured in an awed voice, "This is amazing."

"I sometimes forget how gorgeous the view is," Reyes admitted and offered the whiskey to Freddy as he asked, "Is Andromeda everything you hoped it would be?"

Accepting the whiskey, he took a healthy swig before replying, "Every day's an adventure." He glanced at Reyes with a sly smile. "Even my nights off are interesting." Offering the bottle, he asked, "What about you? Why did you come here, Reyes?"

He didn't answer immediately, taking the whiskey back and drinking down a healthy swallow as he debated how to explain the myriad reasons that had led to joining the Initiative. After a moment, he admitted quietly: "To be someone."

"You're someone to me," Freddy told him just as quietly, shifting closer to Reyes on their perch.

"I'm starting to think that kiss was more than just a distraction." He eyed Freddy with a growing smile, cupping his cheek.

Freddy covered his hand with his own, his voice coming out in a whisper, "Maybe it was."

Unable to resist any longer, Reyes gently tugged him into another kiss. This one tasted of whiskey, just like the ones they'd shared so long ago. _I didn't expect to see him again. Maybe there's a reason that we've found each other here in Andromeda._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Peebee's comment about thinking like an asari wasn't meant to sound like they're the only ones who can think long-term, but that's her frame of reference as an asari herself. They're taught to think long-term and that's what struck her about what they found in the Collective base.


	6. Settling Matters

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Surprises and choices abound for Freddy.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I've always been salty that you don't really get much content with Reyes after you finish on Kadara. Not even an opportunity for a booty call or something.

As they slowly made their way through the cave network the Charlatan had chosen, Peebee kept her pistol up and out, ready for anything. Well, almost anything. She wasn't prepared for Reyes to step out of the shadows onto a rock ledge above their heads. "You look like you're waiting for someone."

"I'm here for the Charlatan," Sloane snapped at Reyes, scowling up at him. "Not some third-rate smuggler."

Freddy answered, his voice full of realization and resignation. "They're one and the same."

"Surprise." The smile on Reyes' face didn't waver, but Peebee wondered if she imagined a hint of apology in his hazel eyes, despite the distance between them.

He glanced at Sloane for a moment, and then back up at Reyes. "The angaran spy, your interest in the Roekaar murders. Everything you've done has been to undermine Sloane's power."

"Death by a thousand cuts," Reyes confirmed with a nod, looking pleased, probably because Freddy pieced it together without prompting.

Sloane glared up at Reyes with a sneer. "You said you wanted to 'settle things.' How?"

"A duel," Reyes told her, jumping down from the ledge. "You and me. Right now. Winner takes Kadara Port."

Peebee stepped forward, frowning with puzzlement as she looked between Sloane and Reyes. "You want to avoid war by shooting each other?"

"Two people shooting each other is better than a _lot_ of people shooting each other," Reyes replied, glancing at her with a half-smile.

A tense silence followed before Sloane declared, "I'll take those terms."

The tension grew as Sloane and Reyes began to circle each other, both with one hand poised near their pistols. Freddy, Peebee, and Jaal moved back against the cave walls to give them room. As Reyes circled to stand below the ledge where he'd appeared, Freddy's head jerked as if startled by something only he could hear and he balled his hands into fists at his sides. Peebee flinched when a shot rang out even though neither Reyes nor Sloane had drawn their weapons. The shot hit Sloane in the chest. As she slowly fell to her knees, Reyes circled in front of her, two fingers pointed at her. "Bang." With that, she collapsed to the ground, dead. "Get her out of here." The sniper who must have fired the kill shot jumped down from his perch to gather up Sloane's body. "Prepare the crew. Kadara Port is ours tonight."

"Guess you got everything you wanted," Freddy remarked, falling into step with Reyes as he walked towards the tunnel opposite the one they'd used.

"What I want is peace," Reyes told him just before the two men walked out of earshot.

Peebee slumped back against the cave wall, putting her pistol away. "Whew!"

"I don't understand," Jaal sounded puzzled as he joined Peebee. "Why did Reyes suggest a duel, if he planned to have his sniper kill Sloane?"

She shrugged, wondering what Freddy and Reyes were discussing--or doing, maybe?--in the other cave. "Not sure. Maybe put Sloane off her guard?"

"Perhaps." He hummed thoughtfully, moving towards the center of the cave and walking around a bit. "No... Well, maybe that, but maybe also--"

Peebee watched curiously as he jumped up to where the sniper had perched, waiting. "Jaal?"

"Could you move to where Sloane was?" He requested in return, drawing his sniper rifle.

Chuckling, she sauntered over, hands propped on her hips. "What's your theory?"

"He gave his sniper a perfect shot at Sloane," Jaal informed her, peering through the scope of his rifle, presumably at her.

Turning in place, Peebee shook her hips for him. "How's this for a perfect shot?"

"Should I leave you two alone?" Freddy asked, sounding amused.

Jaal put his sniper rifle away. "No, Ryder. We were testing a theory."

"And I thought I may as well give Jaal a show," Peebee added as the angara jumped down from the ledge.

Nodding skeptically, Freddy waved towards the tunnel that would lead them back to the Nomad. "Let's head back to Kadara Port."

"Yes, Ryder." Jaal led the way.

Peebee fell into step with Freddy and nudged him. "So, you and Reyes, huh?"

"Yeah. We still have some things to talk about," he admitted, licking his lips.

Looking closer, she realized they were kiss-swollen and snickered. "Oh, yeah, 'talk'. Mm-hmm."

"Stoppit," he protested quietly, ducking his head.

Peebee glanced at him curiously. "Wait, are you _blushing_ , Ryder?"

"Nope!" Freddy's answer came too quickly to be anything but a lie.

She laughed, delighted by this development. "I didn't know you _could_ blush."

"Terry's usually the one who blushes," he admitted, rolling his eyes.

Patting his arm, Peebee assured him, "I won't tell anyone. I promise."

"Thanks, Peebee."

"Always, Ryder."

*

"You two go ahead," Freddy told Peebee and Jaal once they reached the Kadara slums. "I'll talk to Reyes alone."

Looking concerned, Jaal took a step closer. "Will he treat the angara better than Sloane did?"

"I think he will." Freddy nodded, offering Jaal a reassuring smile. "He helped rescue Vehn Terev and solve the Roekaar murders. He wants our people to co-exist peacefully."

After considering that for a moment, Jaal nodded, his bioelectricity pulsing against Freddy's biotics for a moment. "Very well. I trust you, Ryder."

"Thanks, Jaal." Freddy pulsed his biotics in return.

Peebee waited until Jaal was out of earshot. "Don't let yourself get _too_ distracted. You still owe me a trip to Eos."

"I know." He smiled fondly at her and kissed her cheek. "Once the colony's established."

She eyed him disbelievingly. "You really think he's going to agree to it?"

"You've seen what life's like here." Freddy's gesture indicated everything they'd seen while trying to solve problems. "A colony will stabilize the community like the vault did the planet."

Peebee nodded after a moment. "All right." She kissed his cheek. "See you, Ryder."

"See you, Peebee." He turned and headed for Tartarus while she headed off to join Jaal on the lift to Kadara Port.

When he entered Reyes' private room, the smuggler greeted him with a warm smile. "Freddy."

"Thought you'd be in the throne room," he observed, sitting down in the same chair he'd used before. "Tartarus is a little shabby for Kadara's new leader, don't you think?"

Reyes rolled his eyes with an amused chuckle. "Come on, Freddy, you know I prefer to rule from the shadows."

"You _are_ a shady bastard." Freddy agreed with a playful grin.

Offering a smirk and a wink, he asked, "But a handsome one, right?" Once Freddy nodded, Reyes sobered, continuing in a more serious tone. "The angara you met at Sloane's party--Keema Dohgrun. She's agreed to be my front." Hazel eyes met violet steadily. "And with Sloane gone, there's room for the Initiative on Kadara."

"I'll start rounding up volunteers for an outpost," Freddy promised him, pleased by the offer. "Might take a while--you exiles have a reputation."

Reyes winked, amused. "Not all of us are thieves and murderers." At Freddy's skeptical look, he added, "I am, but some of the others are perfectly nice."

"Perfectly." Freddy laughed, amused that Reyes hadn't lumped himself in with the 'nice' ones.

Reyes laughed softly. "Jokes aside, I want this outpost just as much as you do." He held Freddy's gaze. "It will have my _full_ protection. That's a promise."

"I allied myself with the right man," Freddy agreed with a warm smile.

Smiling back, Reyes said, "If we're done with all the boring business talk, there is something I want to do."

"You're up to something." Freddy observed as Reyes stood up and tapped at his omni-tool a few times. "Again."

Giving him an apologetic smile, Reyes told him, "I neglected you on our first date." He offered his hand with a bow as music started to play. "How about we fix that?"

"I didn't know you had a romantic streak." Delighted, Freddy took Reyes' hand.

Drawing Freddy to his feet and into his arms, Reyes began to guide them in small circles. "There's a lot you don't know about me."

"I look forward to finding out more about you," he whispered, losing himself in the gentle sway of their bodies.

Reyes sighed softly. "Since leaving the Nexus, my survival has depended on secrets. I don't want any more of those between us, Freddy."

"Don't make promises you can't keep, Reyes," Freddy told him gently, his smile tender. "You _will_ have secrets--that's who you are. Just don't lie to me about the big stuff."

Reyes smiled, blinking back tears. "Thank you."

"For what?" Freddy wasn't quite sure why Reyes would say that.

He kissed Freddy softly. "For accepting me." As the music faded, he lowered his voice to a quiet whisper and asked, "Why didn't you save Sloane when you had the chance?"

"Because we're a match," Freddy whispered back, his hands tensing on Reyes' shoulders.

Reyes met his eyes, the hazel so much more intense than when they'd first met. "Yes, we are."

"Oh, good." Relieved, Freddy pulled him into another kiss, sweet and tender this time instead of frantic and hungry like in the cave.

Reyes nipped teasingly at Freddy's lower lip. " _Very_ good."

"God, yes." Freddy moaned, trying to deepen the kiss.

To his surprise, Reyes gently held him back. "Before we get carried away, I'm going to suggest something that might surprise you."

"I'm not sure you can surprise me more than you did with the reveal that you're the Charlatan," Freddy mused, hardly noticing that they'd stopped moving.

Reyes chuckled. "I suggest that we maintain an open relationship."

"I-- you-- what?" Freddy stared at him, almost as stunned as he was when Reyes revealed himself in the cave earlier.

Smiling gently, Reyes explained further. "We're a match, yes, but we're going to be away from each other for long periods of time. I don't expect you to remain celibate."

"That's... unusual." Freddy cleared his throat, trying to process everything. "I, um, it's only fair if it goes both ways."

Reyes studied him carefully, clearly concerned. "Are you sure, Freddy? You won't mind if I sleep with others between your visits?"

"Yeah, yes." Freddy nodded quickly, and then sighed. _He should know why I'm surprised._ "It's just... the only other time I had an 'open' relationship, I didn't _know_ it was open until I caught my lover in bed with someone else."

To his secret pleasure, Reyes scowled at the thought. "That's not an open relationship, Freddy."

"Oh, I know." Freddy had seen right through the lie. "He just said it to try to keep me from breaking up with him. Which I did anyway."

Reyes cupped his cheek, hazel eyes worried. "If you're _really_ not fine with the idea…"

"It's fine, Reyes." He turned his head to brush a kiss across Reyes' gloved palm. "I don't know how often I'll be able to visit Kadara, so please don't feel you have to abstain for my sake."

Nodding, Reyes' eyes darkened and he licked his lips. "Very well, but before you leave Kadara, I want more than a few kisses from you."

"That I can do and _quite_ happily." Freddy drew him into a hungry kiss, looking forward to it.

*

"Peebee, this is a pleasant surprise." Reyes hadn't expected any of Freddy's team to visit him at all, let alone by themselves. "To what do I owe the honor?"

The asari stood and fidgeted for several moments before blurting out. "I've never seen Freddy happier than he has been these past few days."

"I'm... flattered?" He supposed she told him to indicate that the Pathfinder was happy because of _him_. The past couple nights had left him pleasantly sore and he would miss Freddy once he moved on.

She nodded, pacing the room. "Yeah. I know _you_ make _him_ happy. Does _he_ make _you_ happy?"

"Very much." Reyes confirmed with a nod. "I respected Alec Ryder, but I admit that I'm glad Freddy's the one who ended up coming to Kadara."

Peebee nodded again, a soft smile curving her lips. "Yeah, things would've been _much_ different if his father or even his sister was Pathfinder."

"Most likely," he agreed, studying her carefully and remembering the times he'd seen her with said Pathfinder.

Shaking herself, she turned to him. "Well, that was all I wanted to know. See you!"

"Peebee." His gentle call stopped her in her tracks. "You like him, too, don't you?"

For a long moment, Peebee stood stock still except for her hands clenching and unclenching at her sides. Finally, she sighed. "I-- Fuck. Yes, but don't tell him. I don't want strings and he does. I'm glad he has you now. Bye!"

"Wait, Peebee!" Either she didn't hear him or didn't heed his call as she rushed out the door. _I guess it's up to Freddy to explain our relationship to her if he decides to take me up on it.  
_

*

"Oh, hey, Ryder." Peebee started when she opened her door to find Freddy standing on the other side. "I was just about to send you an e-mail."

Frowning, Freddy asked, "About what?"

"My scanner picked up the location of the next piece of rem-tech I need," she explained, fiddling with the piece they'd picked up on Eos after talking to Hydaria about the _Leusinia_ with Cora. "It's on Havarl."

He nodded, stepping further into the room so the door closed. "I'll add it to everything else we need to check into there."

"Good, good." Peebee shifted her weight, trying very hard to ignore the pull she felt towards him. "Was there something else?"

Freddy touched her elbow, drawing her eyes to him. "May I kiss you?"

"Um, what about Reyes?" She'd _not_ expected him to ask that! "Is your relationship already on the rocks or something?"

Shaking his head with a soft laugh, he explained, "Reyes and I agreed to have an open relationship, since we’re going to be away from each other so much."

"Oh." Peebee wondered if that's why Reyes had called after her when she'd talked to him on Kadara. "That's... practical."

Freddy nodded, rubbing the back of his neck with one hand. "Yeah, it's just--I've never been in one before, so I'm easing into it."

"If I e-mail Reyes, is he going to tell me the same thing?" She narrowed her eyes slightly. She'd known people who would claim an open relationship when they'd been caught cheating.

He stared at her in surprise. "What happened to 'No worries if you're with somebody else, I can be totally discreet?'"

"That was before you were worried about flirting with Reyes in front of me," Peebee answered with a shrug. "Clearly, _you_ care if you're with someone else and I'm trying to respect that."

Freddy rolled his eyes with a fond smile. "I wouldn't even ask for a _kiss_ if we'd decided to be monogamous, Peebee."

"Good point." With that, she grabbed the front of his tank top and pulled him into a kiss.

After a moment or two of surprise, he responded to the kiss, his hands coming to rest on her hips. When they parted to catch their breath, he smiled shyly at her. "Thanks, Peebee."

"If you decide you want to do more, you know where to find me." Peebee kissed the tip of his nose playfully.

Freddy wrinkled his nose briefly and nodded. "I'll keep that in mind."

*

"That almost made the separation worth it," Freddy murmured, sighing and stretching luxuriously, relishing the slight ache in his muscles.

Reyes kissed his cheek, light and teasing. "Almost. I'm still greedy enough to prefer to have you in my arms _every_ night."

"Did anything exciting happen while I was gone?" He asked, shifting in the loose circle of Reyes' arms so they were face-to-face.

"Nothing _you_ need to know about," Reyes countered, which Freddy took to mean didn't involve the colonists. "What about you?"

"Let's see... after Eos, we headed to Havarl for several different reasons." As he talked, Freddy idly toyed with the dog tags Reyes still wore. "After we took care of those and stabilized Havarl, we headed to Elaaden."

Nodding, Reyes told him, "That's where the krogan settled after they left the Nexus, All desert, if I remember correctly."

"We didn't stay for long," Freddy told him, draping his arm across Reyes' waist now. "Just enough to find some stasis pods from the _Natanus_ that had been ejected. For some reason." He scrubbed his eyes when tears suddenly stung at the backs of them. "Everyone in them was dead. SAM couldn't tell if it was before or after they were ejected."

Reyes gently gathered Freddy close. "Maybe it's better not to know."

"Maybe." Returning the hug, Freddy rested his head on Reyes' shoulder. "We rescued some friends of Liam's since the coordinates he gave me weren't far from there. That was a bit of a clusterfuck, but now Liam will hopefully think things through a bit more in the future."

Reyes chuckled. "No wonder you've been gone so long." When Freddy tensed, he kissed his forehead. "Shh. I understand. Anything else?"

"Yeah, the last piece of tech that Peebee needs is here, though another group got to it before us." He pouted at the reminder. "Their leader returned it, but took something else that Peebee needs to finish her project, so she's chasing down leads for that."

Reyes gently shifted their positions so Freddy now lay on his back with Reyes sprawled across his chest. "You've been very busy. Are you going to go after the Archon soon?"

"Not yet." Freddy shook his head, idly trailing his hand up and down Reyes' back. "We're headed to Voeld next to follow a lead Cora found for the _Leusinia_."

Reyes tilted his head to one side, contemplative, "I'm curious as to why you're so focused on finding the other arks. Why not confront the Archon? You have the means to find him."

"I don't know how that confrontation's going to go." Sighing deeply, he reached up to comb his fingers through Reyes' hair, tousling it even more. "We only got away from him last time thanks to SAM. If something, God forbid, happens to me, I want to be sure there are other Pathfinders who can pick up the slack."

Reyes nodded slowly, looking pained for a moment. "I understand." Freddy knew he did, too, as the Charlatan. Then he pressed a kiss to Freddy's chest, right over his heart. "Now, did you take advantage of our open relationship at all or did you focus only on being Pathfinder?"

"Yes, I spent a few nights with Peebee along the way," Freddy slowly nodded, wishing he didn't feel so nervous. It was _Reyes'_ idea, after all! "She said to thank you for suggesting it."

Reyes looked pleased. "Good for you! I hoped you would." He lightly pinched Freddy's side, making him jump. "Tell her she's quite welcome and _you_ need to stop feeling guilty about it."

"What about you?" Rubbing the spot Reyes had pinched, Freddy gave him an indignant look. "Did _you_ share your bed with anyone while I was gone?"

Winking, Reyes assured him, "Not _this_ bed, no. I _did_ , however, visit some old friends when I needed company."

"Okay..." Freddy trailed off, examining the emotions he felt at the news that Reyes had slept with other people. "Huh. I don't feel jealous or hurt, just glad for you."

Reyes kissed Freddy's chest again. "Exactly! That's how it's _supposed_ to work."

Smiling, Freddy grabbed Reyes' gorgeous rear with both hands and pulled him up for a proper kiss. Reyes responded eagerly. _God help me, I think they're **both** matches. Fuck.  
_

*

"Ugh." Reyes groaned when the sound of an omni-tool alert woke him up. Reluctantly pulling away from the still-sleeping Freddy, he dug through the clothes they'd left scattered on the floor. Finally finding the offending omni-tool, he sat down on the floor and answered it. "H'lo?"

Peebee's face grinned back at him from the little screen. "Well, good to know that you meant the open relationship thing. Is Freddy available?"

"Oh, yeah. Here." Reyes held up the omni-tool.

Grumbling, Freddy slid his hand through the loop and sat up against the pillows to talk to her. "Hey, Peebs, what's up?"

"I finally tracked down someone who can help us find Poc," Peebee declared, sounding excited.

Freddy smiled, catching Reyes' hand with his free one when he slid back under the covers with him. "That's great news, but why are you contacting me?"

"He might need a little convincing," she told him, her eyes flicking down for a moment. "Say, by the 'big, bad Pathfinder'?"

Stifling a yawn, Freddy nodded. "I'll be there as soon as I can, Peebs."

"Great! See you soon!" Grinning, Peebee ended the call and her image disappeared.

Dropping his arm to his lap, Freddy leaned over so his head rested on Reyes' shoulder. "I wanna stay with you, Reyes."

"You have a job to do, though." Reyes kissed the top of his head, touched by the fact that Freddy wanted to stay with him. "Pathfinder."

Grumbling, Freddy kissed his cheek and forced himself from the bed. Though he pretended to check his messages, Reyes watched through his lashes as Freddy got dressed. Still holding his shoes, Freddy stopped short, and then turned to Reyes. "She called me Freddy."

"That's your name, isn't it?" Reyes gave up on pretense, dropping his arm to his lap.

Shaking his head, Freddy clarified, "She's only ever called me Ryder before."

"Funny, she's always called you Freddy when we've talked." Reyes scratched idly at the stubble along his jaw.

Freddy stared at him. "Really?" Reyes nodded. "You've talked?"

"A bit." He nodded again. "She's glad we make each other happy. I think she was prepared to never be with you again."

Finally putting his shoes on, Freddy told him, "Yeah. She knows I take my relationships seriously, so she wanted to respect that."

"There's more to her than meets the eye," Reyes mused, scratching at his chin again.

Freddy laughed derisively. "Oh, I'm well aware of that, but her last lover burned her pretty badly, so she doesn't want strings."

"And you do," he murmured, fitting a few more pieces together.

Looking up from tying his laces, Freddy asked, "What was that?"

"Nothing. You'd better get going before Peebee's informant runs away." Reyes activated his omni-tool to start a new file.

Freddy gently pushed his arm down. "One more kiss?"

"For you? Always, Freddy."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The open relationship just makes sense, given how much time you spend apart from Reyes. I have no idea who Reyes slept with, but they're people he trusts.


	7. Under Pressure

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Freddy's feeling the pressure of being the sole Pathfinder. Not to mention seeing his father's memories that stir up strong emotions. He has help dealing with both.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I like the idea that Peebee _says_ no strings, but it happens anyway. You can't live on that tiny ship for long without becoming attached to your fellow crew members to some extent.
> 
>  **WARNING:** Canonical character death in this chapter, but they get better.

"Freddy?" Harry raised his eyebrows when the door to the Pathfinder's quarters opened at his approach. Worried, he stepped inside to find the lights dimmed. "I got your-- _fuck_." The lights had brightened, revealing his godson curled into a ball on the bed. "What's wrong?"

Scrubbing his eyes with one hand, Freddy's other hand repeatedly signed 'Mom', 'Dad', and 'Terry', over and over again. "I unlocked two more memories."

"What were they this time?" he asked quietly, his heart thudding in his chest.

Freddy looked down at his hand and balled it into a fist, as if he hadn't realized he'd been signing. "One was the day Mom died."

"Fuck." Signing the word as he said, Harry sat down beside Freddy and pulled him into a tight hug. "I-- That-- _Fuck_."

Giving a wet laugh, Freddy uncurled enough to hug Harry back, his voice hoarse with grief and tears. "Pretty much my reaction."

"Go ahead and cry," Harry told him, kissing his forehead.

Freddy nodded, still crying, but brought his hands up between them, signing his explanation, "I saw all of us, except Dad, of course." Scrubbing his eyes, Harry nodded and signed for Freddy to continue. "Then Terry and I left to give you three some privacy." He nodded again. "Then you left because you had an emergency." Harry grimaced, remembering that. He wondered if things had been different if he hadn't left. "Then Dad bent down to press his forehead to Mom's, they said 'I love you' and Mom said good-bye."

"And that's where it ended?" Harry wondered, snagging the tissues from the bedside table.

Another nod, then Freddy took a tissue to blow his nose. After tossing it in the wastebin, he signed, "Underneath everything was denial, but more than anything, Dad loved us."

"Of course he did." Harry had to resort to signing, too, his throat clogged with tears of his own at the reminder of that day. "That never faded."

Scowling, Freddy retorted in a hoarse voice, "He didn't really _show_ it after Mom died. He just seemed to withdraw further into himself."

"I know." Harry sighed softly, taking a moment to blow his nose, too. "I'd hoped things would change once we got to Andromeda, but, well..."

Freddy rolled his eyes. "Yeah."

"I'm glad you and Terry are still here," Harry assured him after a short silence.

Scooting closer, Freddy leaned forward to tap their foreheads together. "Me, too."

"Now, you said you saw _two_ of Alec's memories?" Harry asked, very curious about what else Alec had wanted the twins to know.

Nodding, Freddy told him, "Yeah, the first one I unlocked was of Dad meeting with some mysterious benefactor. Apparently, _they_ were the one funding the Initiative, not Jien Garson."

"Right." Harry nodded in return, and then bit the inside of his cheek.

Freddy studied him with narrowed violet eyes. "You already knew."

"Alec told me when he got back from the meeting," Harry admitted without hesitation.

A ragged sigh. "Of course." Scrubbing his eyes, Freddy asked, "Did you ever wonder about Jien Garson's death?"

"Not really?" Harry frowned at him. "My focus has mostly been on the patients in my care, your sister included."

Smiling wryly, Freddy explained, "Apparently, blaming it on the power outages and other problems with the Scourge was more for convenience. No one really looked into it."

"Until you did," Harry supplied, leaning forward to press their foreheads together once more. "What did you find?"

Taking a deep breath, his godson signed, "I think she was murdered."

"By this benefactor?" Harry signed back, realizing that the position of their bodies would hide the signs, even if anyone besides them and Terry _could_ understand sign language.

Freddy nodded. "Them or a lackey. So, even if Dad _had_ survived, he might have been targeted by the benefactor anyway."

"For knowing too much?" Freddy signed 'yes'. "That's grim."

Rolling his eyes again and sighing, he told Harry, "SAM says there are more memories, but they're still locked."

"Good luck." Harry pulled Freddy into a hug.

Freddy hugged him back. "I love you, Uncle Harry."

"I love you, too, Freddy."

*

"Why do I get the impression that these visits to the Nexus aren't doing you much good, Ryder?" Peebee asked the question when Freddy stopped by her room after they'd left for Aya.

Freddy stared at her, surprised. "What do you mean?"

"You always look like shit when you come back from them. What are you _doing_?" She'd tried to respect his reticence regarding these visits. He'd certainly respected _her_ reluctance to talk about Kalinda except under duress.

He folded his arms across his chest, defensive. "I've told you, visiting my sister."

"Uh-uh." Peebee shook her head, refusing to buy that as his reason. "No way _that's_ why you always look like you've been bawling your eyes out."

Arms still folded, Freddy asked, "You sure you want to know? You told me you didn't want to attach strings to our relationship."

"If you _really_ want to keep it secret, that's fine." She had to admit that he had a point, but she was worried about him. "If you don't, however, and just aren't saying something because of me, well, I'm willing to listen. You've heard _my_ sob story."

He nodded and chewed his lower lip for a few moments. Finally, he told her quietly, "The long and short of it is that being Pathfinder has dredged up some old memories and grief, which has led to me crying and looking like shit, as you so eloquently put it."

"You're welcome." Peebee grinned, glad to have _more_ of an explanation.

Chuckling, Freddy added, "You're the only one who's really noticed, so, thanks."

"Would you like some company until we get to Aya?" She offered after a short silence.

He stared at her for moment, and told her gently, "I'm not interested in sex right now."

"Wasn't offering." Peebee had figured as much. "I know some people just like cuddling. That's what I mean."

Freddy stared again, and then nodded. "Yes, please."

"Your quarters are more comfortable for cuddling," she reminded him.

Laughing softly, he led the way there, stripping down to his boxers once the doors closed behind them. He dug out a shirt and offered it to her. While she changed into it, he curled up under the covers. She joined him, curling easily into his warmth. He tapped his omni-tool and quiet, soothing music started to play. It didn't take long for Freddy to fall asleep, his head tucked into the space between Peebee's neck and shoulder. She remained awake, absently stroking his back and hair. _I am so **fucked**.  
_

*

"I'm going to be in my quarters. Unless it's an absolute emergency, _don't_ wake me until we get to the Nexus," Freddy ordered Suvi and Kallo, hanging onto his composure by a thread.

They acknowledged the order and Freddy headed down to his quarters. After changing into pajama pants, he climbed under the covers and curled into a ball. Bringing up his omni-tool, he began to watch home videos from the Milky Way, hardly noticing the tears trickling from his eyes. He didn't look up when the door chimed. After a moment, SAM told him, "Peebee is waiting outside your door, Freddy."

"Okay." Freddy let the current video finish playing. "Let her in, SAM."

The door slid open and Peebee stepped into the room. Golden eyes studied him as she moved to the bed. Stripping down to her shirt and underwear, she slid under the covers with him and pressed against his back. "It's been a _lot_."

"I'm fucking _tired_ of being the Pathfinder," he murmured, covering her hands with his.

He felt her kiss the back of his neck, sending a shiver down his spine. "Having Vederia and Avitus around should help with that now."

"She hasn't trained and he's grieving," Freddy reminded her, carefully lacing their fingers together. "I'm still technically the most senior of us."

Peebee gently squeezed his hand. "Did you know about Avitus and Macen being involved?"

"Nope. Dad and Cora dealt with the other Pathfinders," he explained, fidgeting with her hand. "I was third, so I wasn't necessary."

She hooked her chin over his shoulder. "Wait, you were _third_? Why are you Pathfinder, then?"

"I was dying and Dad made me Pathfinder to save me," Freddy scrubbed at his eyes, that part of Habitat 7 a little hazy. "Though, I think he always planned for me or Terry to end up Pathfinder."

Peebee gently turned him over, cupping his cheek with her free hand. "If that was the case, why was Cora your dad's Second?"

"The position's not _meant_ to be hereditary," he explained, taking her hand and holding it.

Nodding, she kissed his cheek. "I'm glad he saved you, Freddy."

"Me, too, though I wish he was still here, all the same." A little hesitantly, Freddy kissed her cheek in return.

Peebee smiled sadly. "I understand."

*

"Freddy! I heard about the asari and turian arks," Reyes greeted Freddy when the latter arrived at his private room in Tartarus. "Congratulations!"

Freddy nodded, taking Reyes' offered hand and pulling him into a tight embrace. "Thanks, Reyes. No leads for the _Paarchero_ , so we're off to find the Archon."

"Be careful." He tightened his grip on Freddy, his heart sinking at the thought. "Come back to me safely, okay?"

Gently cradling Reyes' face between his hands, Freddy kissed him, hard and hungry. "I don't have long, but I wanted to see you again, just in case I don't--"

"Shh." Reyes placed his finger across Freddy's lips. "We both know it could happen, but let's not think about it."

Freddy nodded, sliding his hand back to cup the back of his neck. "That's why I came here."

"I suspected." Smiling, Reyes kissed him, just as hungry.

When he slid one hand down to squeeze Freddy's gorgeous ass, his lover groaned into the kiss. "Fuck, Reyes."

"That _is_ the plan, yes?" Reyes smirked at him.

Smiling sheepishly, Freddy nodded. "Yeah..."

"I understand." Tapping his omni-tool, Reyes ensured the door was locked and they wouldn't be disturbed except for a dire emergency. "Now, where were we?"

"I believe right here." Grinning, Freddy tugged him into another kiss, busying himself with the fastenings for Reyes' flight suit.

Laughing a little, Reyes eagerly responded to the kiss, reaching for Freddy's pants in return. "Just a guess here, but I assume we can't linger?"

"Not this time, no." Freddy shook his head regretfully, pushing the flightsuit down past Reyes' hips to bunch around his thighs. "Sorry."

Chuckling, Reyes returned the favor with Freddy's pants. "Don't apologize, Freddy. Just make sure this quickie is a good one."

"As you wish." Freddy grinned and guided Reyes back towards the couch. It wasn't the first time they'd fooled around on said couch and probably wouldn't be the last.

Later, Reyes watched as Freddy finished cleaning himself and pulled his pants and boxers back up. "Remember to come back to me safely, Freddy."

"I plan to, but you know what they say about plans and enemies." Finished buttoning his pants, Freddy bent and kissed Reyes yet again, light and sweet. "I love you."

Reyes couldn't resist groping his ass one last time. "I love you, too."

"I'll message you once we finish our mission." Freddy reluctantly eased back, his right hand forming a sign that he'd taught Reyes.

Smiling, he held up his right hand in the same sign: "I love you."

A bright smile lit Freddy's face before he left the room. Sighing, Reyes cleaned himself up and took the lift up to the Port. Since he and Freddy had decided to keep their relationship discreet, he couldn't say good-bye publicly. So he climbed up to his favorite perch and watched the _Tempest_ rise up into the sky and disappear into the distance. As he sat there, his omni-tool chimed with an alert that he had a new e-mail message.

**_Freddy_ ** __

_To: Reyes  
From: Peebee_

_I'll watch his back for you. Don't worry._

_Peebee  
_  
He smiled and sent a reply

**_Re: Freddy_ ** __

_To: Peebee  
From: Reyes_

_I know you will. Thanks. Watch yours, too._

_Reyes  
_

*

"It's useless to struggle." The Archon's voice sent chills down Peebee's spine. She _hated_ that they were helpless, suspended in immobilizing fields, unable to move. He stalked towards them and circled Freddy as he spoke, "I've been in this forsaken cluster for decades, surrounded by amoeba." He passed Peebee and Drack, eyeing them contemptuously. "Then you arrive--a human, able to do the unthinkable. You even evaded me." Peebee didn't _quite_ hide her grin at that reminder. She almost wished she could have seen the look on the Archon's face when the _Tempest_ suddenly turned and sped away, out of his grasp. "Such an unlikely rival. It was almost invigorating to have one. And yet, it's a fitting end."

Freddy must have forgotten that he was supposed to stay alive, because he retorted, "Is that what sad looks like? I'd give you a hug, but..."

"Hey, hands off!" Peebee snarled when the Archon suddenly gripped Freddy's throat.

Completely ignoring her, the Archon turned Freddy's head from side-to-side, thoughtful, and then stabbed a large needle into the back of Freddy's neck through his armor. Freddy gave a grunt of pain, but didn't react otherwise. "A first sample. Your testing begins now. I will learn your secret soon enough." A moment later, he glanced to one side, snapping out a single word, "Report." After a short pause, he added, "Await my arrival." He stared at Freddy for a long moment. "Save your strength, human."

"Raeka must have run into trouble," Peebee observed once the kett were gone.

Freddy coughed a few times. "We have her beat." Another cough. "SAM, what can you tell me?"

"I'm sensing a biological transmitter in your bloodstream now," the AI answered promptly, as if he'd been waiting for Freddy to ask. "Attempting to neutralize it."

Peebee didn't stifle her chuckle when Freddy countered, "Okay, that's priority two for sure. Any idea how to break out of this?"

"The containment fields only interact with living matter," Peebee frowned, noticing that Drack looked as puzzled as she was. "If you expire, the field around you will extinguish until manually reset." She wasn't sure she liked where this was going. "As you know, my access to your physiology allows me to enhance your vital signs when required. I can also do the opposite."

Freddy perfectly voiced Peebee's opinion of the matter. "Whoa, whoa, whoa--kind of don't want to die today, SAM!"

"After stopping your heart, I would attempt to resuscitate, of course." SAM's attempt at reassurance didn't really work, at least for Peebee.

Peebee's hands balled into fists when Freddy asked, "Are there any other options?"

"None that I can determine." SAM's reply made Peebee's heart freeze.

It seemed to stop altogether when Freddy, after thinking for several moments, said, "All right. Let's do it."

"Ryder... good luck." She couldn't think of anything else to say, wishing desperately that she'd let herself give in to the pull more often.

Drack said what she left unspoken: "You better come back."

"Stopping your heart... now," SAM announced.

Peebee knew the moment it worked, even without the field around Freddy deactivating, leaving him sprawled on the deck. The pull she'd felt towards him that had been steadily growing 'snapped', taking her breath away and leaving a sharp ache. Staring down at Freddy's limp form, arms and legs akimbo, she asked with forced steadiness, "SAM?"

"Stimulating the cardiovascular core..." SAM declared, just as Freddy's body jerked, and then lay still. "No response. Stimulating the cardiovascular core..."

This time, when Freddy's body jerked, he drew in a gasping breath and Peebee felt the pull snap back into place, taking her breath away again. As she fought to compose herself, Freddy grabbed his shotgun from the deck, "That's twice now I've come back from the dead. Can't say the experience is improving."

"I believe it is preferable to the alternative," SAM reminded him as Freddy forced himself to his feet and turned to Peebee and Drack.

She couldn't stop a glare when he observed, "You two look comfortable."

"Down. Now." Drack growled.

Freddy walked over to a nearby console and pressed a button. The fields around Peebee and Drack disappeared. When he rejoined them, she couldn't resist pulling him into a tight hug for a moment, unable to speak. He returned the hug only for a moment before gently easing her back. "Let's find a way out of his cage, huh?"

"Yeah." She nodded, accepting her pistol from Drack. "Let's find the map and get the fuck out."

As Freddy began poking around the room, Peebee promised herself that the two of them would have a 'chat' once they were safely back on the _Tempest_.

*

"Oh, hey--" Freddy didn't get another word out before Peebee grabbed the front of his tank top and pulled him into a kiss, hard and desperate.

Once he recovered from his surprise, he responded eagerly to the kiss, hands sliding over bare blue skin. Shifting her grip from Freddy's shirt to his hips, Peebee started backing them towards the bed. "I need you, Freddy. Now."

"Yes." He nearly tripped trying to kick his shoes off while she pulled his tank top up and over his head, tossing it aside.

Reaching the bed, she lounged back against the pillows, gold eyes hooded as she waited for him to push his pants and boxers down. Reaching for his hand, she practically pulled him on top of her, winding her arms and legs around him. Pressing her forehead against his, she whispered, "Hard and fast, Freddy. _Please_."

"Fuck, Peebs," Freddy moaned, kissing her hungrily as she rolled her hips against his.

Peebee gripped his rear with both hands, squeezing tightly. "Please do. I want to _feel_ it."

Moaning again, he gave in to her demands, part of him not surprised by her urgency. He'd died before her eyes, after all. If Lexi was upset just from the mission logs, he could only imagine how much worse it'd been for Peebee to _watch_. Afterwards, when he tried to pull away to grab something to clean them with, her arms and legs tightened around him. "We need to clean ourselves up."

"Leave it," she mumbled against his neck, her limbs still tight around him.

Frowning, Freddy tucked his finger under her chin and tilted her head up. Tear tracks streaked her cheeks, black lines trailing from the makeup smudged across her eyes. "What's wrong?"

"You _died_ , Ryder. Right in front me," Peebee reminded him, her eyes going hard. "Don't you _dare_ do that again."

Sighing, he used his biotics to grab the tissues from the bedside table, using one to tidy her makeup. "I'm sorry, Peebs, but you heard SAM. There wasn't another way."

"I know, but that doesn't mean I have to like it." Sighing, she grabbed a couple tissues and wiped the makeup off entirely. "I told Reyes I'd watch your back."

Smiling ruefully, Freddy grabbed the wastebin, too, tossing his used tissue into it. "Lucky you didn't tell him you'd keep me alive."

"I still had an e-mail waiting for me." Peebee tossed hers in it as well, grabbing another to continue cleaning her face. "Said he'd lost colors and asked me what happened."

He closed his eyes with groan. "Shit."

"Tch, yeah." After a moment, he felt her kiss his forehead.

Opening his eyes, Freddy told her, "We have to go to the Nexus first. Then we'll go to Kadara."

"He'll understand." Peebee assured him, using her biotics to move the wastebin and tissues off the bed. "He has colors back, at least."

He nodded, cupping her cheek with one hand. "Yeah. That's my only comfort right now."

"I know." She turned her head to kiss his palm, and then tugged him into another kiss, this one slow and sweet and tender.

Freddy gave a quiet groan as she rolled her hips against his. "Again?"

"No rush this time, Ryder," Peebee murmured, deft hands sliding over his skin once again. "Just want you close."

"As you wish."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Asari match by feeling 'pulled' towards their match. The stronger the match, the stronger the pull. When a match dies, they feel a 'snap', like a rubber band breaking. If their match is revived (like Freddy was), it 'snaps' back.


	8. Relationships

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Terry finally wakes up! And then Freddy heads to Kadara to 'apologize' to Reyes.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Freddy _did_ contact Reyes on the way to the Nexus, but it wasn't the same as visiting him properly.

"--vitals improving steadily, Dr. Carlyle." She became aware of voices around her.

Her godfather's voice surprised her, "Thanks, SAM. Keep monitoring."

_Isn't he supposed to be with Dad? Wait, Freddy said Dad died._ Frustrated, Terry forced her eyes open and winced at the bright light. "Fuck."

Harry sounded amused and relieved. "Trust you to push yourself, Terry."

"Uncle Harry?" This time, she opened her eyes slower, gradually focusing on his familiar face. "Where are we?"

He scanned her with omni-tool. "The _Hyperion_ 's cryo bay. You've been in a coma for quite some time, young lady."

"I distinctly remember that Lexi's supposed to be here and _you_ were on the Pathfinder team." Terry carefully sat up, with some help.

Giving a faint smile as he performed some manual tests, Harry replied, "Let's just say I realized I was too old for field work and we switched jobs."

"She's older than you." She couldn't resist teasing him a little.

Giving her a fond smile, he reminded her, "She's also asari."

"True." After a moment, Terry opened her arms and asked hopefully, "Hug?"

After a moment of hesitation, Harry bent and hugged her, whispering, "We've missed you."

"Not my fault," she countered as he pressed their foreheads together for a moment. "Where's Freddy, anyway?"

He shrugged, reluctantly releasing her and straightening up. "Not sure. Alec made him the Pathfinder before he died, so he's been busy with that."

"Freddy's the Pathfinder? I thought Cora was Dad's Second?" Terry stared at him in surprise.

Harry smiled sadly. "He did it to save Freddy's life."

"Well, at least Freddy's had the training," she pointed out, part of her relieved that the responsibility hadn't landed on _her_ shoulders. "Can you imagine if it'd been _me_?"

Before Harry could reply, the doors to the cryo bay slid open and Freddy rushed in. He caught sight of her and hurried forward. "Terry!"

"Freddy!" Terry opened her arms again, delighted to see her brother.

A smile lighting his face, Freddy closed the distance between them and hugged her tight. "Man, it's good to see you."

"It's good to see _anything_." She smiled as he eased back enough to press their foreheads together. "I was starting to think I'd never wake up."

Straightening up, he took a moment to hug Harry before sitting down beside her on the bed. "Well, I sure missed having you around. We've hit a few rough patches along the way."

"I'm sorry I wasn't there when Dad died." Terry took his hand and pressed the sign for 'I love you' to his palm.

Freddy returned the gesture. "There's nothing anyone could've done. I wasn't even sure I should tell you."

"I'm glad you did." She sighed, scrubbing at her eyes when she felt the prickle of tears. _No! I'll cry once Freddy's gone._ "It gave me time to let it sink in. Besides, we promised we wouldn't lie to each other, remember?"

He nodded, still holding her hand in his. "I remember. It's why I decided to tell you the truth, even if it _did_ upset you."

"I'll miss him," Terry confided, ignoring the ache in her chest at the thought that he'd never apologized to her. "But I also know that he'd be the first to say, 'Get over it and get on with it, already.'"

Freddy gave a soft chuckle, bumping her shoulder with his. "Oh, there's been _plenty_ of that."

"So I hear--Mr. Pathfinder," she bumped him back, feeling playful.

He shook his head with a sheepish laugh. "Not by choice."

"From the sounds of it, you're going to need all the help you can get..." Terry pushed herself to her feet, determined to do the job she'd signed up for.

Freddy stood up, too, catching her when she wavered. "Careful!"

"No way are you fit for duty, Terry," Harry scolded, rushing over to help steady her. "That stubborn skull of yours needs a chance to heal."

Feeling a little sullen as she reluctantly sat back down, she groused, "Says who?"

"Just for once take it easy, will you?" Freddy chided, resting a hand on her shoulder. "There'll still be plenty of mountains left to climb when you've recovered."

Smirking, she told him, "Better leave the tallest one for me."

"Ha, ha." Freddy's mocking laugh didn't diminish her amusement in the slightest.

Laughing softly, Harry told them, "If you two want to catch up some more, that's fine." He gave Terry a Look, green eyes stern. "But no getting out of bed."

"Yes, Uncle Harry," Terry replied contritely.

As their godfather moved away, Freddy perched on the edge of Terry's bed. "You're probably wondering how things have been going?"

"Yeah, feeling a little out of it." She rested her hand on his knee, needing the connection to him. "I know you're Pathfinder, but not much else. Did they make you president of the universe, too?"

He took her hand, holding it in both of his. "Well, the big vote is tomorrow, and I'm here to make sure every comatose patient has their say. Vote Ryder."

"Ha, ha." Terry squeezed his hand gently. "So what've you _really_ been up to?"

Returning the squeeze, Freddy took a moment to marshal his thoughts. "In a nutshell: We found an alien terraforming network that spans the cluster. We're going to reactivate it at some place called Meridian."

"Wow." She eyed him thoughtfully. "That all?"

He shook his head with a cheerful grin that didn't reach his eyes. "Nope--there's also a race of aliens called 'kett' that wants to turn all of us into them." He squeezed her hand gently when she gasped, pressing a hand to her mouth. "And their leader, a guy named 'Archon,' wants me dead."

"Freddy," she murmured, tugging on his hand.

He leaned forward to hug her again. "I'm all right, Terry. I'm here. I'm alive."

"Maybe taking a long nap wasn't so bad." Terry wasn't sure how she could have handled all that happening to _her_ instead of him. Though it would have meant Freddy was safe, at least.

Freddy laughed softly and sat up. Instead of speaking, he brought up his hands to sign, "You should know. Dad was keeping some secrets from us."

"How do you mean?" She asked, signing the question.

Movement distracted them and they noticed that Harry had moved closer. Giving them a nod, he signed, "Go ahead, Freddy."

"Thanks, Uncle Harry." Freddy continued to sign. "First off, SAM's a lot smarter than he let on. Also, his connection to Dad--and now me--is way more powerful than the other SAMs."

Terry raised her eyebrows. "I never knew that. What was Dad up to?"

"Dad encrypted memories in SAM." Freddy's gaze was intent as he signed, his movements taking on an urgency that Terry hadn't seen in him before. "I've started unlocking them."

If she'd been speaking, her voice would have been hushed. "What were they?"

"You, me, Uncle Harry," he indicated each of them as he used their name signs. Then he took a deep breath and added, "And Mom."

Tears stung Terry's eyes. "You saw her?"

"At that 'reunion dinner' she twisted our arms on." Freddy rolled his eyes expressively and a wet laugh escaped Terry.

Sighing, she signed, "Yeah...awkward."

"Yeah." Freddy nodded, running his fingers through his hair once he'd signed the word. "Still trying to figure out what it all means."

Harry moved closer and signed, "About SAM being more powerful: does this have anything to do with the fact that SAM stopped your heart?"

"He did _what_?" Terry barely remembered to sign instead of speak. "Freddy?"

Sighing heavily, Freddy told them, "Yes, he did, but it was the only way we could escape. Lexi's already scolded us about it."

"I wish I could have words with Alec right now." Harry scowled as he signed. Then he nudged Freddy. "Tell her about the other memory."

Frowning, Freddy retorted, "You really think I should? She's still recovering."

"Now you have to, because I'm curious," Terry interjected, glowering at them.

Sighing, Freddy signed, "I also saw the day Mom died. I was a mess afterwards."

"I bet." Terry paused to scrub her eyes again. "Why did Dad encrypt these memories?"

Freddy shrugged. "I don't know, but there's at least one more."

"Keep me in the loop, please," Terry requested, yawning the next moment.

Freddy hugged her again. "As long as you rest."

"As if I have the energy for anything else," Terry griped, yawning again.

He smiled, pressing his forehead against hers. "Love you."

"Love you, too." She squeezed his hand and reluctantly let him straighten up.

Freddy hugged Harry for a moment, whispering something Terry couldn't hear. Then he left. Sighing, Terry reluctantly relaxed on the bed. "You can read or watch vids on your omni-tool, but _no_ getting up."

"Thanks, Uncle Harry." Terry smiled, amused that her godfather knew her so well. Glancing at the door, she commented, "There was something different about Freddy."

Harry nodded, sighing. "Yeah, I've noticed it, too. He's too serious."

She considered that for a few moments, and then slowly nodded. "Yeah, _too_ serious. That sounds about right."

*

Reyes paced his quarters on Kadara, waiting for Freddy to arrive. It took all his self-control to remain there instead of dashing off to find the Pathfinder. If he did, he wouldn't be able to restrain himself from kissing him. Finally, finally, finally, the door slid open and Freddy stepped inside. He offered a sheepish wave. "Hey, Reyes."

"Shut up," Reyes ordered him, hauling him into a heated kiss.

Moaning, Freddy wrapped his arms around Reyes, responding eagerly to the kiss. "Reyes..."

"I told you to shut up." Reyes nipped at Freddy's lower lip, then turned and towed him over to the waiting bed. "We'll talk after you've fucked me into the mattress."

A low groan answered that statement and Reyes turned to face Freddy once again. " _Fuck_ , yes."

"Knew you'd like that idea." Smirking, Reyes began undressing Freddy, briskly and efficiently.

When Freddy tried to return the favor, Reyes swatted his hands away. "Hey!"

"Get on the bed," Reyes ordered, picking up the lube from the bedside table and shoving it into his hands.

While Freddy slicked himself, Reyes stripped off his own clothes with less care than he'd shown for Freddy's. By the time he'd joined Freddy, his lover was looking at him hungrily. He spread his legs invitingly. Settling between them, Freddy asked, "What do you want?"

"Hard and fast." Reyes ghosted his fingers over the shadows of the bruises he'd left on Freddy's hips. "I _need_ you, Amor."

Smiling ruefully, Freddy did as Reyes asked. By the time they both came, tears trickled unashamedly down their cheeks. Bending to press his forehead against Reyes', Freddy murmured, "I'm sorry. We were trapped and the only way to get out of it was for SAM to stop my heart, temporarily."

"Wait, SAM stopped your heart?" Reyes pushed him back to stare into the violet eyes. "I thought that was beyond his capabilities?"

Freddy shrugged, grabbing the washcloth Reyes had left on the bedside table. " _My_ SAM can, because Dad tinkered with him. The other SAMs can't."

"As long as he _never_ does that again, I won't say anything more about it." Reyes couldn't stifle a soft whine at the loss of Freddy inside him.

Giving a soft laugh as he finished cleaning them, Freddy told him, "I got almost the same lecture from Peebs. Except she was more emotional about it. 'Course, that was right after I died, so..."

"Really? Huh." Reyes tapped his chin thoughtfully, shifting to lay on top of Freddy once he'd joined Reyes under the covers. _Something to think about later._ "I've never _not_ seen colors, Freddy. That was the first time I only saw grays."

Freddy blinked and stared at him for a few moments. "Seriously? You too?"

"Wait, what? Too?" Reyes stared back at him, stunned. He'd never met anyone else who'd also seen colors all their lives. "You've always seen colors?"

Nodding, Freddy reached up to scrub his nails through the short hairs at the back of Reyes' neck. "Yeah, though I admit they became more intense after-- after I met Peebee. Then I met you and they became even _more_ intense."

"Huh." Reyes rubbed his chin again. "Well, colors certainly became more intense after I met _you_ , Freddy." He lightly brushed his fingers along Freddy's temple. "Can't say they've become even _more_ intense, though."

Freddy smiled, drawing Reyes down into a sweet kiss. "That doesn't matter."

"You're sure?" He eased back, studying Freddy carefully. "What about Peebee?"

Sighing, Freddy gently tugged Reyes' head down to press their foreheads together. "She didn't want strings, I did."

"Lucky me." Smiling, he closed the remaining distance between them to kiss Freddy, sweet and soft.

*

"Ryder, he's got Poc," Peebee told Freddy once they'd finally reached the coordinates on Elaaden she'd gotten from Samrick. Her shoulders drooped as they approached the turian and Poc. "She's broken, though."

Freddy shrugged, observing, "Guess Kalinda didn't take very good care of her."

"Hey, I don't want any trouble," the scavenger spoke quickly when they stopped in front of him, mandibles fluttering just a little with nerves. "I found this site abandoned. By scavenger law, it's all mine."

Freddy held up a hand to stop the turian, telling him, "We're not here to fight you for it."

"That's a relief..." the scavenger seemed to think better of that, quickly correcting himself: "I mean, a good thing!" He cleared his throat before continuing. "Well, I'm a businessman, you see, so I'm willing to sell if you see anything you like."

Peebee could see a smile twitching at the corners of Freddy's mouth as he asked, "Did you see where the crew that used this site went?"

"Nope." The turian shook his head. "They were trouble, though. Led by a pain-in-the-ass asari with a mean-as-spit krogan toadie." Peebee caught Freddy's eye and he nodded slightly. "They've been picking Remnant sites clean all over. Never leave anything worthwhile behind."

She stifled a laugh when Freddy raised an eyebrow and asked, "Really?"

"But, uh, they screwed up and left some choice items here, though." The scavenger backpedaled quickly as he realized that could hurt his chances of getting a good price out of them.

Nodding, Freddy asked, "You ever hear of an asari named Kalinda T'Reve?"

"That's the, uh... pain-in-the-ass asari I stupidly mentioned," he admitted, his mandibles fluttering as he sighed. "Please don't tell her I called her that, or next time I see her, it's _my_ ass."

Before Freddy could ask another question, Peebee indicated Poc and practically demanded, "How much for the broken Observer?"

"What, this thing?" the turian turned and gingerly nudged Poc with one finger. "Yeah, it may look trashed, but I assure you, it's easy to fix right up." He turned back to them. "In fact, I could do it myself and make a killing, so, uh, no discounts."

Peebee shook her head in disbelief. He clearly had no experience selling _anything_. "Right, this guy's going to put her back together."

"Let's get down to business," Freddy suggested, glancing between Peebee and the scavenger.

The turian must have realized they were serious about buying Poc and asked, "Okay, look, what do you think is fair for the Observer?"

"Take this, and consider yourself lucky," Peebee slapped some credits into his hand, too impatient to get Poc back to try to negotiate with someone who had no idea how valuable she was anyway.

He looked down at the credits and nodded. "Yup, that'll do. Pleasure doing business with you."

"I'll get her to the _Tempest_ and put her back together," Peebee told Freddy once the scavenger left. "Thank you, Ryder. Maybe this Kalinda nightmare is over."

Freddy shook his head. "Don't start going naïve on me, Peebee."

"Yeah." She sighed deeply and scooped Poc up with a biotic field. "Regardless, I can upgrade my Remnant scanner now."

When Poc wobbled mid-air, he extended his hand to reinforce her biotic field. While his biotics weren't as powerful as Cora's or as fluid as Peebee's, he had better and finer control of his than either of them. "If you want to get started on repairing her right away, I can ask someone else to come down to help Drack and I sort things out here."

"Thanks for the thought, Ryder," Peebee told him as they carefully carried Poc out to the Nomad, where Drack waited for them. "but I can wait a little longer to get to work fixing her."

*

"Hey, stranger." Freddy smiled as he joined Peebee in her 'room'. "How're you doing?"

Straightening up, Peebee asked, "Has she delivered?"

"We just received a massive shipment of Remnant tech, quite valuable." he replied with a nod, and then offered her a datapad. "And this."

Turning it on, she read the message on it aloud: "Pelessaria, with my compliments. My crew won't bother you again. In your debt. Always, Kalinda."

"So she made good on her promise." Freddy leaned back against the table next to Peebee, folding his arms across his chest. "She still doesn't strike me as someone to trust."

Shrugging, Peebee leaned back against the table once more so their shoulders brushed. "Being a fingertip away from death _can_ change a person." She bumped his shoulder with hers. "Still, best if we scan everything she sent over."

"Better safe than sorry," he agreed with a nod, bumping her back.

She sighed deeply, picking up a datapad to fidget with it. "I just wish we could have had that device. The scan data _does_ provide a glimpse into how Remnant acquire programming, though." Turning to face him, she continued in a philosophical tone, "So we missed out on a key to unlocking secrets of the tech, but maybe we came away with a glass to listen at the door."

"We _do_ have a little bookkeeping matter to discuss," Freddy reminded her, walking towards the closed escape pod hatch.

Peebee followed him over with a resigned sigh. "Ah, nuts. Yeah, the _Tempest_ is light one escape pod. That's gonna cost me, isn't it?"

"Next time we dock at Nexus, you buy a new one," he told her firmly. Part of him wanted to just forget about it, but as Pathfinder, he _had_ to put his foot down. "If you don't have the funds, you work it off over time. Got it?"

She propped her hands on her hips, clearly overdoing her offended reaction. "Hey, I'm the one out a bedroom. What do we do about _that_?"

"Mine's pretty big," Freddy reminded her with a sly smile. "And comfortable."

Peebee deliberately moved into his space, her smile just as sly. "Comfortable, huh? Never made much difference to me."

"Gee, that's too bad--" He honestly wasn't sure _what_ he intended to say.

She reached up and stroked his cheek with the tips of her fingers. " _But_... people change, right?" Stretching up slightly, she kissed each of his cheeks, and then his lips with butterfly kisses. "Who knows, maybe even _I_ can."

"Peebs." Freddy caught her hand before she moved too far away. "I don't expect more from you than you're willing to give. You know that, right?"

Smiling, Peebee stretched up to kiss him again, lingering this time. "I _do_ know that, Freddy, and I'm very glad for that." Stepping back, she tugged on his hand. "C'mon, let's go see what Kalinda sent us."

"Right with you." Squeezing her hand gently, they left her room together.

*

"Are you sure you want to go looking for this artifact now?" Reyes asked when Freddy shifted his position yet again.

Freddy nodded, wincing before checking his omni-tool. "I'm sure. Avela's waited long enough for these as it is."

"Why not have SAM take care of your bruises, Amor?" Reyes glanced at the display and sent the shuttle into a gentle glide towards the ground.

It took a moment for his lover to answer, his voice strained. "I earned these bruises, as you know very well."

"Not from me." Chuckling, Reyes lightly set the shuttle down near the coordinates Freddy had provided, courtesy of SAM.

Laughing, Freddy stood up and gathered Reyes into a tight embrace. "No, but I earned _those_ ones, too."

"But this one?" Reyes lightly skimmed his fingertips over the bruise around Freddy's right eye, nearly obscuring the scar.

Flinching, Freddy caught his hand and pressed a kiss to it. "Don't tell me you didn't get into your share of bar brawls back in the Milky Way."

"Well, yeah, but I didn't have a krogan backing me up." Laughing, Reyes kissed him softly. "Come on, let's find that artifact."

They exited the shuttle and drew their weapons, carefully approaching the coordinates. As they got closer, Freddy holstered his shotgun and activated his scanner, sweeping it before him as he walked. "Nothing so far."

"How's Peebee?" Reyes couldn't resist asking. They'd exchanged brief e-mails, but she seemed reluctant to say anything of substance.

Freddy gave a soft huff of laughter. "She--we-- I don't know quite where to begin."

"What do you mean?" He moved closer to Freddy's side, concerned.

Keeping his right arm steady, Freddy reached up to lightly punch his upper arm. "Nothing to worry about. We found Poc on Elaaden--"

"Poc?" Reyes wasn't sure who or what Freddy meant by that.

Chuckling, Freddy explained, "A Remnant Observer Peebee managed to reprogram. Anyway, we found it on Elaaden, so she finished building the Remnant scanner she'd been working on."

"How is it different from this one?" Reyes indicated Freddy's scanner.

Freddy held up his free hand. "Wait, I think I found it."

"Really?" Reyes peered over Freddy's shoulder at the scanner. Unfortunately, he couldn't see the readout unless he wore the omni-tool. "What is it?"

As Freddy dismissed the scanner and bent to scrape away the dirt, SAM answered, "It appears to be some sort of instrument, Mr. Vidal."

"I've told you before to just call me Reyes, SAM," Reyes replied, rolling his eyes, as he knelt to help Freddy.

It didn't take them long to uncover a stringed instrument. Freddy's voice was hushed as he carefully picked it up. "This is amazing. I wish Terry were here."

"Why Terry?" Reyes glanced at him curiously as he pulled out the bag he'd brought along, just in case they _did_ find something.

Freddy very carefully eased the instrument into the bag. "She loves history. Back in the Milky Way, she helped dig up Prothean artifacts."

"She'll get her chance at it now that she's awake," Reyes assured him, helping to close the bag and secure it so the instrument wouldn't get damaged. "Now, what did Peebee do?"

As they returned to the shuttle and flew back to Kadara Port, Freddy told Reyes about Peebee's scanner picking up a Remnant signal in a system not far from the Nol system and her ejecting the escape pod with her, Freddy, and Drack in it because there wasn't a safe landing area for the _Tempest_. "In the end, we didn't get the tech, but Peebee's ex sent us a huge shipment of Remnant tech, like she promised. Whether she'll leave us alone remains to be seen."

"Are you sure that was the right thing to do, Amor?" Reyes wondered, setting the shuttle down on its landing pad.

Freddy gazed seriously at Reyes. " _Nothing_ is worth a person's life, Reyes."

"Even someone who's been a pain in your ass like this Kalinda?" He tilted his head curiously.

Freddy nodded firmly. "Even hers. We can't replace people."

"You're right." Reyes sighed softly, resting his forehead against Freddy's. "I was thinking like the Charlatan, not a Pathfinder."

Gently nudging Reyes' forehead with his, Freddy smiled fondly. "That's my job, not yours. I still love you."

"Good to know." Cupping Freddy's cheek, Reyes kissed him one last time before they left the shuttle together. "I love you, too."

"I know."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Trying to balance the progress of Peebee and Freddy's relationship with the deepening of Reyes and Freddy's relationship has been interesting.


	9. Almost There...

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Freddy finishes unlocking his father's memories and heads back to Khi Tasira to find Meridian.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Freddy, Reyes, and Peebee finally get their shit together in this chapter. The scene will be somewhat familiar, since it's what mainly prompted me to write this fic.
> 
>  **WARNING:** Canonical character death in this chapter. They'll get better (again).

"Well, here's the pod you told me to find," Terry told Freddy when he approached her in the cryo bay. "What's so important about 'Elizabeth Reilly'?"

Coming to a stop facing the pod alongside her, Freddy asked, "If you could have one person back in your life, who would it be?"

"Hmm... Mom--no question there..." she trailed off, frowning in thought. "Wait a minute. Elizabeth Reilly... the initials. 'E.R.' Are you saying...?"

He nodded, his eyes and voice full of suppressed excitement. "I saw Dad's last memory. 'E.R.' is Ellen Ryder! He brought her along. Terry--it's _Mom_!"

"Oh my god..." Terry stepped forward to press her hand to the cryopod, picturing her mother just inches away. " _Why_?"

Freddy frowned at her, his excitement fading. "Terry? What's wrong?"

"Mom had accepted her death, Freddy," she reminded him, dashing away the tears she felt building. "She even urged us to move on! And Dad put her in __stasis__."

He bowed his head, looking utterly deflated. "Fuck. You're right."

"Whether it was right of Alec to do it or not, he _did_ ," Harry remarked as he approached the twins. A soft, sad smile curved his lips as he pressed his hand to the cryopod beside Terry's. "Despite my medical ethics, I'm glad I haven't lost her."

Terry studied him with narrowed eyes. "You knew?"

"Dad told him, of course." Freddy shook his head in bemusement.

Harry nodded. "Yes, he did, though he swore me to secrecy." He looked at Freddy. "I take it you saw another of Alec's memories?"

"Yeah." Freddy's voice was hoarse and Terry hugged him. "It was from Habitat 7, before you and the others found us."

As he hugged her back, she asked quietly, "Was this right before Dad died?"

"It must have been." Harry rested his forehead against Freddy's temple, tears leaking down his cheeks. "They were both unconscious when we found them, Freddy wearing Alec's helmet and Alec wearing none."

Terry swallowed hard. "Was the atmosphere toxic?"

"Not breathable for us at least," Freddy told her quietly. "The last thing he said was 'there's still hope for your mother'."

Tears trickling down her cheeks, Terry moved to hug Harry, who shook with silent sobs. SAM piped up then, "Alec hoped that in Andromeda, we would discover new scientific insights that could provide answers."

"We already know the angara are immune to TH-314," Freddy told them, turning to hug Harry as well. "Thanks to that, the Nexus science team and angaran volunteers have begun to develop a cure for it. Perhaps something similar will happen for AEND."

Gulping, Harry added, "Or we can use the kett's genetic research. It's far beyond what we'd achieved in the Milky Way."

"I'm angry on Mom's behalf, but I'm also happy that we haven't lost her after all." Terry sighed, resting her forehead against her godfather's temple.

Freddy echoed the gesture on Harry's other side. "I get it."

"I love you both, whether we succeed or not," Harry whispered, wrapping his arms around them in a tight hug.

Terry remained silent, her eyes on the cryo pod. _I'm sorry, Mom. We have a chance to save you and we **have** to take it.  
_

*

"Contact me if something comes up," Freddy told Kallo and Suvi once they'd set course for Elaaden once again. He wanted to go to Meridian, but there always seemed to be something that needed more immediate attention.

Suvi nodded. "Yes, Pathfinder."

"See you." Leaving the bridge, he slid down the ladder to go to his quarters.

He paced for several moments, unable to get his godfather's parting words out of his head, _"I suppose sharing that memory was Alec's way of passing the torch to you, Freddy. You know we'll help as much as we can."_

"Freddy, you are very agitated," SAM's calm voice cut into his thoughts. "Perhaps you should ask Peebee to join you?"

Freddy stopped and stared at the router on his desk. "SAM, are you suggesting I have sex?"

"I have simply noted that her visits have had a beneficial effect when you've been agitated." SAM's calm retort brought an amused smile to Freddy's lips.

Without further prompting, he contacted her via the comms, his heart thumping against his ribs. "Peebee, could you join me, please?"

"Uh, sure. One sec." Peebee's prompt reply made him smile.

Minutes later, the doors slid open to admit her. Freddy offered a feeble wave. "Hi, Peebs."

"You look like shit again," she declared even as she gathered him into a hug.

He hugged her back gratefully, feeling the knot of tension and nerves in his stomach begin to unravel. "I know."

"Whatever you need, I'm here for you, Freddy." Peebee kissed his cheek.

Freddy kissed hers in return. "Thanks, Peebs."

*

"So, uh, the reason I wanted to talk to you all--" Peebee began, pacing out her nerves as she finally admitted what she'd been thinking for a long time now.

Jaal interrupted her carefully-prepared speech. "Uh-oh, did you mutiny and jettison Freddy?"

"Ah, no such luck," Vetra observed, nodding to Freddy, who'd come to a stop at the top of the ramp from the lower deck.

Freddy grinned and admitted, "She did ambush me, but I survived."

"No harm, no foul?" Peebee offered with a nervous laugh. She turned back to the gathered crew. "I just want to say: Whether you all know it or not, I've had one foot out the door since I got here. And, well, that's gonna stop." She stopped pacing as she said it. "I'm proud and happy to be part of this team. This... family. That's... that's really it."

Cora broke the silence. "Uh, okay."

"About time you caught up, kid," Drack agreed with fond exasperation.

Vetra nodded her agreement. "Yeah, you're one of us, whether you like it or not."

"Well... great." She was relieved that they took her admission so well. "So, uh, my place is an utter mess--who wants to help me clean it up?"

They quickly scattered, offering various excuses, until only Freddy remained. Smiling fondly, he told her, "Peebs, you know you'll still have to share me with Reyes."

"I don't care." Grinning, she rushed into his arms, knocking him flat on his back.

He laughed breathlessly into her eager kiss, his arms tight around her. _I need to talk to Reyes, too.  
_

*

"Peebee, this is a pleasant surprise." Reyes smiled when she arrived at his private room in Tartarus. While the other Pathfinder crewmembers had visited him occasionally, she hadn't since they established the colony. "To what do I owe the honor?"

Rather than taking a seat, Peebee paced the small room. "I, um, I've done a lot of thinking lately, especially since--oh, you wouldn't know about that."

"You think Freddy doesn't tell me what he gets up to with you and the others?" He inquired with a sly smile.

She stopped and stared at him for a few moments. Then she shook herself and began to pace once again. "My point is that I finally admitted to myself that I fell in love with Freddy a long time ago. I let my experience with Kalinda prevent me from accepting it."

"You know he and I are lovers," Reyes reminded her gently, wondering where she was going with this conversation.

Peebee nodded. "I know, and I'm honestly not bothered by it. Asari have multiple matches, though they're usually sequential." She exhaled noisily. "Anyway, Freddy's affection for me didn't decrease in the slightest once you two became involved. I know I have nothing to fear from your relationship with him."

"But?" He prompted when she fell silent.

She blinked and stared at him in puzzlement. "But what?"

"There's something more, isn't there?" Reyes asked with arched eyebrows. "Otherwise, why bring this whole situation up at all?"

Peebee offered him a shrewd smile. "I'd like to get to know you better, Reyes." She finally sat down in the spot Freddy usually occupied (when he didn't choose to just sit on Reyes' lap). "Freddy loves you for a reason and I'd like to find it out for myself."

"You have my contact information, Peeebee," he reminded her with a mischievous smile. "Feel free to use it, within reason, of course."

Smiling, she stood up and kissed his cheek. "Thanks, Reyes."

"Thank _you_ , Peebee," he murmured after she'd left.

A short while later, Freddy arrived, his armor dusty and dirty, but otherwise unmarked. "Hey there, stranger."

"Hi, Freddy." Reyes had barely finished locking the door when Freddy sat in his lap and kissed him, deep and hungry.

He returned the kiss happily, holding Freddy close. _I wonder what it'd be like to **truly** share him with Peebee._

*

"This seems perfectly in line with how everything's going," Freddy told Peebee when she joined him in the Pathfinder quarters. He paced as he continued ranting, giving vent to everything he'd kept to himself. "Dad's dead, the golden worlds aren't so golden, and now Meridian's gone. Not to mention the kett shitshow we ended up in back there!" He waved vaguely back in the direction of Khi Tasira. "Can I _please_ get a break once in a while?"

Peebee intercepted him during his pacing and drew him into a gentle embrace. "We have a plan, don't we?"

"Yeah, Suvi has a great idea, but we still went through all of that for _nothing_ ," he complained, resting his forehead against hers with a heavy sigh that released the last of his impotent anger. "Against the Nexus leaders' explicit orders, no less."

She shook her head, bringing his hands up between them, finding the knuckles bruised and bleeding on both. "What did you do?"

"Punched the bulkhead," Freddy admitted with a sheepish laugh.

Peebee glanced over at SAM's router. "I thought SAM was supposed to prevent this sort of damage as part of his programming?"

"I told him not to," he explained, ducking his head, feeling guilty. "I know better by now."

She shook her head, stepping back. "Nope, you are _not_ going to leave your hands like this. If you won't let SAM or Lexi take care of it, I will. Do you have a medpack?"

"In the desk, Peebee," SAM answered promptly.

Freddy frowned at the AI, surprised by his intervention. "Traitor."

"We care about you, Freddy," Peebee told him, finding the medpack in short order. He knew that she'd find some of the supplies missing. He fought the urge to squirm when she turned to ask, "This wasn't the first time you hurt yourself, was it?"

Unable to bring himself to speak, he could only sign, "No."

"I meant it when I called this crew a family," she reminded him as her biotics pushed him over to the bed and made him sit. He let them with an amused smile. "We're here for you, Freddy."

Freddy nodded, letting her take his hands and dab medi-gel on his knuckles. The cuts and bruises stung for a moment before the pain slowly faded. "I know, Peebs. The last time I punched the bulkhead was... after we found Aya, when we were still trying to figure out how to be a team."

"I get it." Wiping the extra medi-gel away, Peebee kissed the backs of his hands. "But, you know, this mission wasn't for nothing. We kicked some serious kett ass _and_ we have a plan to help us find Meridian before the Archon does."

Sighing again, he turned to face her, resting his head on her shoulder. "I know. I'm just _tired_ of everything going wrong."

"It hasn't _all_ gone wrong, but I know what you mean." She scooted away so she could lay back against the pillows and gestured for him to join her. "It all eventually balances out."

Freddy nodded, stretching out beside Peebee so his head rested on her shoulder, one arm draped across her waist. "Thanks for listening, Peebs."

"Always, Freddy." He felt her kiss the top of his head and sighed deeply. _Here's hoping Suvi's idea pans out.  
_

*

"Alone at last." Peebee straddled Freddy's lap and kissed him, deep and hungry. It'd been absolute torture to sit quietly during the movie with Freddy and Reyes behind her, sharing the occasional kiss. Once everyone (including Reyes) left to finish cleaning up the mess, she put her and Reyes' plan into action.

He responded eagerly to her kiss, hands sliding under her jacket to smooth over soft blue skin. She fought back a giggle when Freddy froze at the sound of Reyes' voice from the doorway, "Now this is a gorgeous sight."

"I can explain," Freddy told Reyes, twisting to look at his lover. Though she felt a subtle push from Freddy's biotics, Peebee didn't move.

Smiling, Reyes walked over to lean on the back of the couch and kiss Freddy, light and sweet. "There's no need, Amor."

"There isn't?" Freddy looked at Peebee, who offered him a sheepish smile.

Sitting back slightly to give him breathing room, she explained, "Reyes and I have been talking."

"Which I'm sure you expected would happen," Reyes added with a wink, vaulting over the couch to sit beside them.

Freddy rolled his eyes. "Of course I did. Peebs told me you'd e-mailed her."

"Well, you enjoy having each of us separately so much." She reached between them to palm the front of his pants, feeling him grow hard under the soft cloth.

He couldn't stifle a moan of pleasure at her knowing touch. Reyes nipped at the spot below Freddy's ear and murmured in a low, sexy voice that made Peebee's heart skip a beat, "We thought you'd like to have both of us together."

"Both?" Freddy stared up at Reyes, and then at Peebee. "Together?"

She nodded, licking her lips as her eyes flicked between the two gorgeous men before her. "I, uh, kind of fantasized about the idea ever since you two started flirting with each other."

"I only hope that we can live up to those fantasies, dear Peebee." Grinning, Reyes offered a wink.

Smoothing his hands along Peebee's thighs, Freddy admitted quietly, "I admit that I've had some fantasies of my own along those lines."

"Did you ever think about it while you were with one of us?" Peebee asked with a bright and knowing grin. "You've said Reyes' name a couple times while you were with me."

As Freddy ducked his head, embarrassed, Reyes combed his fingers through his hair. "And you've said Peebee's name while you were with _me_."

"And I've apologized every time." Freddy took Peebee's hand and kissed the back.

Gently freeing her hand, she cupped his cheek, urging him to look up and meet her golden gaze. " _Is_ this something you want, Freddy?"

"We won't be hurt if it isn't," Reyes added, his hand sliding down to rest on the nape of Freddy's neck. "We'll abide by your choice."

Peebee's entire body seemed to thrum with arousal as they waited for Freddy to think about it, violet eyes flashing from one to the other, and then down at his lap where his arousal hadn't abated in the slightest. Licking his lips, he nodded firmly. "Yes, _please_."

"Aw, he's begging already and we haven't even started undressing," Peebee crooned, leaning down to kiss the tip of his nose, her own heartbeat speeding up at the thought of fulfilling some of the fantasies she'd had of these two men.

Reyes chuckled, nipping at the spot below Freddy's ear again, eliciting a chest-deep moan from Freddy as well as a roll of his hips under Peebee. "SAM? Privacy mode, please."

"Yes, Mr. Vidal." SAM answered promptly.

Freddy moaned again when Reyes scrubbed his fingers through his hair. "I-- are you two _sure_?"

"Absolutely," Peebee assured him, ending on a gasp when she slid forward to grind against him.

When they looked at Reyes, his hazel eyes were hooded with arousal as he traced Peebee's headcrest with his other hand. Noticing their scrutiny, Reyes nodded. "Oh, yes, Amor."

"C'mere." Freddy pulled Reyes to him for a sloppy, desperate kiss. Peebee slid her hand along Reyes' back to his ass, giving it a firm squeeze.

Pulling back from Freddy, Reyes turned to her with a silent question in his eyes. Grinning, she answered the question by kissing him. While Freddy was playful and coy when he kissed, Reyes was teasing and flirtatious and Peebee quite enjoyed the difference. She pulled back only when they needed to breathe. "I think this will work out _quite_ well."

" _Fuck_ , that was hot," Freddy breathed, his eyes dark with arousal as he looked up at them.

Reluctantly, Peebee stood up, and then offered her hands to them. "Let's move to the bed. It'll definitely be more comfortable."

"Agreed." Reyes took her hand and stood up, kissing her cheek.

Freddy followed them up, wrapping an arm around each of them. " _Yes_."

*

"Domesticating the adhi is taking longer than my original estimates," Reyes mused as he studied the reports from the Collective.

Keema laughed softly, her expression fond. "Is it any surprise when the woman in charge of the project had to be detained for faking the Charlatan's orders?"

"Not in the slightest, but she was in charge for a reason." He laughed with her, and then rubbed his eyes with a frown.

She must have noticed because she set her datapad down with a quiet 'click'. "Reyes, is something wrong?"

"I--I'm not sure." Reyes looked from Keema to the view out the window. "Everything's fading, losing… color… Shit, no. No, no, no."

Keema stood up and joined him on the couch, winding a motherly arm around his shoulders. "Take a deep breath and tell me."

"Most humans don't see colors until they've met a potential match," he explained, bringing up his omni-tool to begin typing a message to Peebee. "If something happens to them, we lose colors."

She squeezed his shoulders gently. "The latter is happening to you?"

"Yes. The only other time it happened was when Freddy died on the Archon's ship." Reyes finished typing the message and sent it, burying his face in his hands. "It's different this time."

Keema gently but firmly pried his hands away from his face. "How is it different?"

"Last time, everything suddenly went gray, like turning off a light," he told her, tears welling up as the blue and green of her skin slowly became two different shades of gray. "This time, it's happening slowly."

She pulled him into a hug as he began to sob. "Trust in his team to save him."

"I'm trying," Reyes managed between sobs.

Keema simply held him and let him cry.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Right, so we didn't get Reyes' reaction to Freddy's first death, but we have it here. I'll just see myself out.


	10. Final Showdown

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The Initiative claims Meridian

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Switching the twins was interesting because you don't generally notice differences in writing for the twins unless you look for them.

"Keep going!" Terry ordered the civilians, waving them on. "The medbay is still secure!"

Harry caught her by the arms. "Terry, what the hell is happening?"

"I wish I knew," she answered him with a shrug of her shoulders.

He searched her face for a moment before he sighed heavily. "Right. I'll do what I can, but _you_ be careful, all right?"

"I'll do my best," Terry promised him, hugging him briefly. He returned the hug, tapping their foreheads together, and then headed for the cryo bay.

As she headed down the corridor in the opposite direction, SAM's voice startled her after a few steps. "Hello, Terry."

"SAM? How are you..." She shook her head before she could finish the question. "What's happening out there? They're shooting people!"

SAM's maddeningly-calm voice informed her, "Kett forces are sweeping the ship. They're looking for you." Terry started walking at that news, determined to make it harder to be found. "Terry, Freddy needs your help."

"This is crazy." Frowning, she dodged around a group of evacuees, keeping her voice down. "He's closing in on Meridian."

As she continued walking, SAM explained further, "The Archon has severed my link to your brother's implant. If basic function isn't manually restored, he will die."

"What?" Terry stopped short at that, her heart freezing in her chest at the thought of Freddy dying for good this time. _And I wasn't there any of the times he's died!_

SAM only urged her, "Please, Terry, proceed to depot K-4 to secure a weapon."

"Goddamn it." Sighing, she headed towards the depot SAM specified. Still keeping her voice low, she demanded, "Context, SAM! Come on!"

He provided it as she dodged around groups going the other way. "The Archon isn't stealing the _Hyperion_. He wants you and me. Your implant is the same as the Pathfinder's. He'll use us to control Meridian and your brother will die."

"The Archon will kill him?" Reaching the depot, Terry opened it and snatched up the first pistol she found.

Somehow, SAM sounded regretful. "No, losing me will."

"What? SAM?" Terry frowned, grabbing extra ammo and tucking it into her weapons belt.

He only reminded her, "Hostiles are ahead, Terry. Be ready." As she set off for the QEC, SAM continued, "I am sorry I can't help you fight. I took over too much of your brother's implant and losing me will kill him."

"So, when the comms dropped, he did, too?" She drew her pistol and began shooting kett that stood between her and her goal. 

SAM's response confirmed her worst nightmare. "Hurry, Terry."

_I can't lose Freddy. He's my best friend._ Terry continued almost blindly.

A shout from Dunn reminded her to pay attention to her surroundings. "Look out! Terry, shoot them!" After all the kett lay dead, Dunn said, "Terry! SAM said you're fighting to the comm override? You can't!"

"I know!" Terry shrugged helplessly as she reloaded her pistol, wishing she had a better weapon. "SAM isn't making sense."

Dunn shook her head, opening a different door than the one Terry had been aiming for. "No, I mean take the access route. If the Pathfinders are in trouble, that's all we need to hear."

"SAM, Dunn won't last long. What's the plan?" Terry asked after reluctantly leaving Dunn to hold the line against the kett, pushing on to the comm override. 

Somehow, SAM managed to convey urgency in his mechanical voice. "Manually send a reboot signal. It will reset your brother's implant."

"Like a factory reset?" She began moving faster when she spotted the QEC. She was almost there. Freddy would be fine soon. 

She wondered if she imagined the guilt in SAM's voice. "To restore the functions I shouldn't have taken. With luck, his heart will not have stopped."

"Do you mean 'luck' or 'hope'?" Terry asked with a wince, balling her hands into fists.

For once, SAM sounded hesitant. "I'm not sure."

"Okay, we're here." She finally reached the QEC console.

SAM sounded as urgent as an AI could be. "One pulse, Terry. That's all the Pathfinder needs."

Terry hesitated, glancing at the corridor where people were rushing past, presumably away from invading kett. Quietly, she voiced the thought that had just occurred to her. "And it'll probably alert the Archon. He'll know where I am."

"I am sorry." SAM did sound apologetic.

She nodded, looking towards the corridor again when the sound of commotion reached her ears. "Me too, SAM. Me too."

Terry snatched up her pistol to aim it at the kett who rushed into the QEC just then. While they hesitated, she looked back at the console and pressed the button that would send the pulse Freddy needed. _I hope we were in time._

*

Freddy burst back to consciousness with a gasp, pushing himself upright. His muscles were stiff and he felt very lightheaded. As he painfully dragged himself to his feet and staggered to the console that controlled the door, he vaguely noticed Drack hammering the Remnant door with his gun and Peebee turning to him, a hand pressed to her chest, her makeup streaked down her cheeks. "Freddy!"

"You were dead," Drack rumbled, giving up on the Remnant door.

Clinging to the console for support, Freddy explained, "The _Hyperion_ 's dark. SAM with it. We need to get back."

"But how?" Peebee asked, moving to his side to support him. "The door is Remnant. You need SAM to open it."

He gritted his teeth, determined. "We _need_ to get back."

"Hang in there, Ryder," Drack told him when his first effort to open the door failed. "Just focus, slow and steady."

Taking a few deep breaths, Freddy tried again. "We need to get back!" This time the door began to open. "It's moving."

"Freddy, if you die this time, I think you're dead dead," Peebee warned him, her arm tight and steady around his waist.

He covered her hand with his for a moment, grateful for her presence at his side. "I can do this!"

"Are you okay?" she asked worriedly when the door finally opened fully so they could leave. "You... don't look good."

Freddy rested his head on her shoulder for a moment, breathing ragged. "Reyes must be frantic right now."

"We need to hurry back to the _Tempest_ ," Peebee replied, helping him walk back to where they'd landed. "Then we can contact him."

He nodded, letting her guide him as they talked to Suvi and the others. It was nice to lean on someone else for a change, but he could have done without dying for a third time. _Terry's going to **kill** me.  
_

*

"Nice speech," Peebee told Freddy as she practically dragged him to his quarters to help him out of his armor. "You've inspired the entire crew. They're running around like monkeys getting ready for the big showdown."

Freddy laughed softly, moving his limbs to aid her efforts. "But not you, apparently."

"You inspire me, Freddy." She cupped his face between her hands, meeting his gorgeous violet eyes steadily. "In ways that are surprising even to me." Kissing him softly, she resumed her self-appointed task. "I've got rem-tech repurposed all over the place, and Poc's souped up and raring to go. We'll keep you in one piece." She set the last piece of armor down and turned to take his hands in hers. "I don't like seeing you suffer. Without SAM, it looks like interfacing with the Remnant hurts. A lot."

Smiling sadly, he brought her hands up and kissed the knuckles. "It would hurt a lot more without you."

"I'll let the schmaltz go because I want a kiss after all this," Peebee told him with a wicked smile, freeing one hand to cup his cheek.

Freddy grinned back, just as wicked. "Just a kiss?"

"I like that I make you greedy." She stretched up to kiss his cheek.

He kissed her cheek in return. "I should call Reyes."

"Do you want me with you?" They hadn't defined any boundaries for their relationship and Peebee didn't want to make any assumptions.

Freddy nodded, slumping onto the edge of the bed. "Yes, please."

"Okay." She sat down beside him and took a moment to remove her shoes and socks.

By the time she'd settled against his shoulder so Freddy's omni-tool could pick up both of their faces, Reyes had answered his, hazel eyes looking red. "Freddy, Peebee! What the hell happened? I lost colors again--slowly!"

"The Archon grabbed the _Hyperion_ and SAM," Freddy explained without preamble. "Terry--" he stopped suddenly, as if he couldn't speak.

When he looked at Peebee beseechingly, she picked up where he'd left off. "Terry's implant is the same as Freddy's, so he'll use Terry and SAM to take Meridian."

"Meridian? You found it?" Reyes' gaze sharpened at that news.

She took a deep breath and let it out slowly, winding an arm around Freddy. "We did, and that's when the Archon struck."

"The Archon will _destroy_ everything we've built if he gets control of Meridian," Freddy added, covering Peebee's hand with his. "And he'll use Terry and SAM to do it."

Reyes responded with forced levity, picking up a datapad as he spoke. "Well, we can't have that now, can we? Not now that I finally have Kadara the way I want it."

"You _are_ a good man, Reyes Vidal," Freddy told him firmly, his expression fond.

He made a show of glancing around worriedly. "Shh, don't go telling everyone."

"I'm sending the navpoint for Meridian." Freddy tapped his omni-tool.

Reyes tapped his in return. "Got it. I'll pass the word to the Collective and the colonists here."

"Thanks, Reyes," Peebee blew a kiss at the screen.

He returned the gesture with a wink. "Now get some rest, both of you look like dea--"

"Like shit, we know," Peebee winked back. "See you at Meridian, Reyes."

Freddy held up his free hand in a sign Peebee didn't recognize. Reyes must have, though, because a soft, tender smile replaced the consternation on his face and he returned the sign. Then the call ended and Freddy flopped back onto the bed with a gusty sigh. "Fuck."

"After we take out the Archon," she told him demurely, even as she stretched out beside him, resting a hand over his heart to feel the reassuring steady beat under her palm.

He covered her hand with his, weaving their fingers together. "You really think we will?"

"This has been his end goal much longer than it's been ours," she reminded him, squirming so he could work a hand under her waist and curl it around her. "He won't give it up without a fight and he's the sort of asshole who'll fight to the death."

Freddy shifted so he could tilt her chin up and violet eyes met and held her gold ones. "Then we'll kill him so Heleus can live."

"So _we_ can live," Peebee corrected, gently but firmly.

He nodded. "Exactly."

*

"I think we got most of the kett outside," someone reported over the comms.

Reyes hadn't seen any kett ships lately and breathed a sigh of relief when someone else asked, "Anyone know anything about what's happening inside?"

"Not a damn thing." A third voice countered.

A fourth voice added, "I guess all we can do is wait for news."

"I see the _Tempest_ ," Crux, acting as his co-pilot, told him after a short silence.

Nodding, he guided the shuttle over to land a short distance away. They climbed out, rifles at the ready, and waited. After a short wait, a burst of chatter on the comms announced that the remaining kett were retreating. He turned to Crux, stowing his rifle on his back. "Take the shuttle and help transport the wounded."

"Reyes..." she trailed off at the look he gave her. "Aye, sir."

After she took off, he wandered towards the _Tempest_ where he could see Kallo, Gil, Lexi, and Suvi waiting. While the two men chatted quietly together, Lexi and Suvi were both focused on their omni-tools, the former with a frown of concern and the latter with a smile full of wonder and delight. Kallo lifted his hand in a wave at his approach, a gesture he returned. "Reyes. Waiting for the Pathfinder, I assume?"

"Of course." Reyes perched on a nearby rock, making himself comfortable. "Any news?"

Gil shrugged, his body still angled towards Kallo. "SAM said Meridian is online, but not a peep since then."

"The rest of the crew went in to back the others up," Lexi added, finally looking up from her omni-tool. "SAM isn't fully reconnected to Freddy's implant, so he can only tell us that Terry at least is fine."

Reyes smiled and tapped his temple. "Well, I can tell you that Freddy at least is still with us, too. I can still see colors."

"Colors?" Gil repeated, and then laughed. "Of course, why didn't I think of that?"

Kallo nudged the engineer playfully. "Why _didn't_ you, Gil?"

"I've gotten so used to _not_ seeing colors," he muttered, rubbing his arm, but Reyes didn't miss the way his eyes kept darting towards Kallo.

Suvi spoke up then, finally distracted from her omni-tool. "There's movement within the structure. I think they're finally coming out."

"Finally!" Lexi exclaimed, starting towards the Remnant doors, followed by the others.

Getting to his feet, Reyes strolled leisurely after them. He was aware of others gathering around him, but the door opened, drawing his entire attention. Freddy emerged, surrounded by Peebee, Drack, Cora, Liam, Jaal, and Vetra. He supported a woman who could only be his twin sister. Lexi rushed forward, wrapping an arm around Terry's waist. Freddy reluctantly let her go, his hand lingering on Terry's back as she moved away from him. As the two women moved through the crowd, Reyes realized that, since Terry was taller than Lexi, the doctor struggled to support her. Before he could gallantly offer his assistance, Suvi approached the two woman and pulled Terry's other arm over her shoulders. As they disappeared towards the shuttles that had begun landing nearby, Reyes turned back to check on Freddy and Peebee. "They all want a nice, big closeup of the hero who singlehandedly saved the galaxy."

"What about y--" The moment Freddy turned to her, Peebee grabbed his armor and pulled him into a big breathtaking kiss.

When she released him, he looked just a little dazed. "And now they all know you're mine."

"And that you're mine." He cupped her cheek for a moment, violet eyes intent.

Reyes laughed as the crowd began to disperse. Freddy and Peebee turned towards him and he offered a wink before joining them to help support Freddy as they walked towards the shuttles.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> One more chapter! Salty about what content the writers gave us for Reyes after defeating the Archon.


	11. We're Home

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Now that the Archon's dead, it's time to figure out what's next.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Last chapter! It's time to pick up the pieces and carry on.

"Freddy!" Harry ignored the asari and human man helping his godson walk towards the shuttles and pulled Freddy into a tight hug. "God, I was so worried about you two. Do you _plan_ to make me go as gray as Alec?"

Thankfully, Freddy returned the hug just as tight, pressing their foreheads together. "You'll _never_ go gray, Uncle Harry."

"That's what _you_ think. Onto the shuttle, young man." He waved Freddy aboard, and then studied the two strangers. Both watched Freddy climb aboard with worry, and then looked curiously at Harry. Sighing, he beckoned for them to board as well. "Well, come on."

Smiling, they clambered onto the shuttle and sat down on either side of Freddy. While she took hold of his right hand to lace their fingers together, he took Freddy's left hand and pressed the sign for 'I love you' to the palm. Freddy smiled fondly at them, and then looked sheepishly at Harry. "Um, Peebs, Reyes, this is my godfather, Dr. Harry Carlyle. Uncle Harry, Peebee and Reyes Vidal are my lovers."

"I thought as much," Harry mused, stifling a smile at the startled glances Peebee and Reyes gave Freddy, and then him. Catching Freddy's gaze, he signed, "Should we tell them?"

Chuckling, Freddy nodded. "Yes, we should."

"Tell us what?" Reyes asked with a low, pleasant Spanish accent.

Harry smiled fondly at Freddy. "I'm not just Terry and Freddy's godfather. I was their parents' husband in all but the legal sense. I helped raise them."

"You were in the Alliance, yes?" Reyes asked after a moment's thought.

Harry nodded, watching with a fond smile as Freddy stifled a yawn, tilting into Reyes' side. "We were, yes."

"I grew up in the UNIN," he explained with a shrug. "They didn't exactly _approve_ of multiple matches, but they couldn't do anything about them. Not the way the Alliance could."

Peebee, holding Freddy's hand between both of hers, added, "Asari aren't strangers to multiple matches, but with our long lifespans, they're usually sequential rather than simultaneous."

"Trust _you_ to be the exception to the rule, Peebs," Freddy murmured, squeezing her hand gently even as he tucked his head into the space between Reyes' neck and shoulder.

Harry scanned Freddy and nodded slightly to himself. "I assume Lexi gave Freddy something so he could fight the Archon?"

"She did." Peebee nodded, frowning. "You know her?"

Harry nodded. "I recruited her for the Initiative."

"I take it that whatever Lexi gave Freddy is wearing off," Reyes remarked, carefully shifting Freddy so he lay sprawled across his and Peebee's laps.

He nodded again. "Yes, it is." His omni-tool beeped and he checked the message on it. "Terry's on the _Hyperion_ , safe and asleep."

"Freddy will be happy about that," Peebee mused, holding his hand in both of hers once again.

Reyes gently stroked his hair and shoulders, as if he couldn't bear to stop touching Freddy. Watching them with his godson brought a lump to Harry's throat. _I wish Alec had survived to see this. I wish they were **both** here to see it.  
_

*

Terry woke up slowly, smiling when she realized that she was curled up with her brother. He'd visited as often as he could after she woke up from her coma, but never for as long as they wanted. His Pathfinder duties had always called him away. As she carefully shifted position, she felt something brush against her stomach. Peering between them, she realized that a pair of blue arms circled Freddy's waist. Following the line of them, Terry spotted an asari with black makeup smudged across her eyes like a mask pressed against Freddy's back, a slight smile on her lips, even in sleep. Realizing she needed to visit the lavatory, she started to slide from the bed. Unfortunately, her brother's arms tightened around her, refusing to let her go. She gave an exasperated sigh. "Freddy..."

Just as she prepared to try to pull away from Freddy again, the door to the room opened to admit Harry and a strange human man. Her godfather grinned when he saw her. "Hello, Sleeping Beauty. Having a problem?"

"Freddy won't let me go and I need to _go_ ," Terry explained, the urgency of her need overcoming any embarrassment she might have felt in front of a stranger.

"I'll help with that." Smiling, the stranger walked over and gently took Freddy's hands in his. This allowed Terry to wiggle out from between them. Before Freddy could wake, he slid easily into the spot she'd just vacated. Freddy mumbled and buried his face in the stranger's neck. He grinned up at her. "Reyes Vidal, Ms. Ryder."

She nodded, figuring she'd find out more later. "Terry, please. Excuse me." Before she could ask, Harry pointed to an unobtrusive door. Ducking inside, Terry took care of her business and washed her hands. When she returned to the bedroom, Reyes had fallen asleep, one of his hands clasped with the asari's and resting on Freddy's hip.

"Terry." Harry's quiet call drew her attention to where he sat in front of the computer terminal. Tiptoeing over, she picked up a chair and carried it over to set it beside her godfather's chair. He stood up and gathered her into a tight hug, which she returned just as tight. "I was so worried about you when I realized the Archon had you."

Blinking back tears, she pressed her forehead to Harry's. "Not my fault, you know."

"I know, but I was still worried." He kissed her forehead.

They both sat down, though Harry didn't let her hand go. Looking over at the three sleepers, she asked quietly, "Are they _both_ Freddy's match?"

"Yeah. The only name she's given me is Peebee." Terry looked at him puzzlement. That didn't sound remotely asari to her, but some liked to ignore convention. He spread his hands in wordless defeat. "When I asked Freddy if it was short for anything, he said Peanut Butter."

After staring at her godfather, Terry began to laugh, softly at first, and then harder until tears rolled down her cheeks. Whether from laughter or something else, she couldn't say and didn't really _want_ to know.

*

"Avela! Welcome to Meridian." Freddy smiled brightly as he greeted her the way Jaal had taught him, his biotics pulsing against her bioelectricity.

Returning the smile as they drew apart, Avela replied, "Thank you for the warm welcome, Pathfinder Ryder."

"Didn't you tell me that you _couldn't_ leave the Repository?" He asked, tilting his head as SAM caused his biotics to ripple like angaran bioelectricity would when they were curious.

Her bioelectricity rippled and snapped in her excitement. "I _had_ to come see Meridian for myself. The center of the vault network..."

"I won't be in charge of exploring it," Freddy explained, his biotics drooping at the thought. "However, I _can_ introduce you to the woman who _will_ be in charge, if you'd like?"

Avela nodded eagerly, her bioelectricity still rippling, though not as enthusiastically. "Yes, please. Where is she?"

"This way." Calming his biotics, Freddy led her into the atrium of the _Hyperion_ , where the party guests had gathered into clumps to talk and laugh amongst themselves. He wove through the groups, smiling when he spotted his sister talking with Suvi off to one side. As he'd expected, when the two met, they'd taken an immediate shine to each other. It was almost a shame to interrupt them, but it was for a good cause. As they drew closer, Freddy called, "Terry, Suvi!"

Looking up, Terry smiled brightly when she saw him and took a few steps forward to hug him tightly in greeting. "Hello, Freddy."

"Hi, Terry." Blinking back the momentary sting of happy tears, he hugged her back just as tightly, and then tapped his forehead against hers. "I have someone else for you to meet."

She blinked, and frowned at him. "Freddy..."

"Don't worry, you'll like her," Freddy whispered, and then turned to face Avela, who waited patiently nearby, her bioelectricity rippling with curiosity. "Avela, I'd like you to meet my twin sister, Terry Ryder, and leader of the Meridian Expedition. Terry, this is Avela Kjar, the curator for Aya's Repository of History."

Avela stepped forward, offering her hand for a handshake. "It's a pleasure to meet you, Ms. Ryder. Your brother has spoken highly of you."

"Nice to meet you, too, Ms. Kjar," Terry replied, shaking Avela's hand after a moment of surprise. "And Repository of History? Does that mean you're a historian?"

Nodding, Avela smiled as she released Terry's hand. "From my discussions with your people, I believe the closer term would be archaeologist."

"Even better." Terry's smile brightened and she took a step closer to Avela.

In doing so, she allowed Freddy a glimpse of Suvi, who watched the two with fondness and resignation. _Hmm, that's interesting._ Clearing his throat to catch their attention, when they looked at him, he nodded slightly towards Suvi. "Avela, you remember Suvi, yes?"

"Oh, yes." Suvi nodded, her cheeks turning pink as she approached Avela to offer her an angaran greeting, which the latter returned with a pleased smile. "It's good to see you again, Avela."

Nodding, Avela told her, "And you, Suvi." Looking between the two women, she asked, "Would you please tell me what you've discovered so far here on Meridian?"

"We're _still_ sorting through the data," Suvi replied, her eyes lighting up.

Freddy glanced at his sister and stifled a laugh at the look on her face. _Oh, this will be **fun** to watch!_ Without a word, he slipped away, looking for one or both of his lovers.

*

"Are you _sure_ we can't give you a lift to Kadara in the _Tempest_?" Freddy asked as Reyes gathered up his clothes from the floor.

He turned to the bed, smiling at the way his lovers lay entangled with each other. "I would love it above all things, but that's _hardly_ keeping a low profile."

"We understand," Peebee replied before Freddy could, sitting up so the sheets pooled around her waist, leaving her upper body bare. Reyes stifled a groan, trying and failing to ignore the way his body reacted to the now-familiar sight.

Freddy, resting a hand on Peebee's back, smirked and murmured, loud enough for Reyes to hear, "You're not playing fair, Peebs."

"As if life itself is fair, Amor," Reyes countered, licking his lips as Freddy sat up as well.

Gold eyes bright with mischief, Peebee turned and pulled Freddy into a hungry, flamboyantly loud kiss. Moaning _far_ too loud, Freddy responded to the kiss, one hand playing with Peebee's breasts while the other smoothed down her spine to her bottom. "Freddy, ohhh..."

"Teasing imps," Reyes practically growled, dropping his clothes to join them on the bed once again, prowling over to tug Peebee away from Freddy and into a hungry kiss with him.

Rather than protest, Freddy simply shifted to begin kissing and nipping at his neck. "One last time, yes?"

"Fuck, yes," Peebee agreed breathlessly as Reyes kissed along her jaw to the spot below her headcrest. "Please."

Tugging her fully into his lap, Reyes resigned himself to putting off his departure for Kadara yet _again_. When Freddy pulled him into a hot kiss, his last hazy thought was: _Worth it!_

*

"I want you to know," Peebee told Freddy as they curled up together in bed. "Sex with you was great before, but that was just the tip of the iceberg."

Freddy smiled, kissing the tip of her nose. "It means so much more now, doesn't it?"

"Yes, it does." She wrinkled her nose at him, making him laugh. "I belong at your side."

He kissed each of her cheeks in turn. "I'm glad you and Reyes are both my match."

"You're definitely my match," Peebee confided, resting her hand over his heart, feeling the strong beat under her palm. "Reyes... I think he's getting there."

Freddy's fond smile brightened, making Peebee's heart skip a beat. "I'm glad. I hoped that would happen. You two suit each other."

"You don't feel threatened?" She wondered, resting her cheek on his shoulder.

He shook his head, kissing her forehead. "Nope. Growing up with my parents and Uncle Harry, I know a triad like this can work."

"What was it like?" Peebee queried, very curious.

For a long moment, Freddy didn't reply, absently trailing his hand up and down her spine. "It was... nice in a way. No matter what, at least _one_ of them was there for us. We never doubted that they loved us."

"What about loving each other?" Peebee asked, taking his other hand in hers.

Freddy nodded, squeezing her hand gently. "Yes, definitely. Dad wasn't very demonstrative in public, but in private, yes... Especially when Terry and I were younger." A soft laugh escaped. "God, the number of times we walked in on our parents kissing--" he shook his head "--no, more than once, they were making out."

"What changed?" She shifted to look directly at him, lacing their fingers together.

Sighing, he looked up at the ceiling. "I think Dad was frustrated by human limitations compared to asari and... everyone else. That's why he started to develop SAM. Then Mom got sick and he realized SAM could help her."

"He became obsessed," Peebee realized, her eyes widening.

Freddy nodded, meeting her eyes once again. "Yeah. By the time Mom died, he'd joined the Initiative, so he kept developing SAM."

"I'm sorry about your mom, but I'm glad we met." Smiling, she shifted to straddle his waist once again, smoothing her hands over the familiar planes of his chest.

Returning her smile with a wicked one of his own, he squeezed her rear appreciatively. "I'm glad we met, too."

Laughing, she leaned down to kiss him, deep and hungry. There were times when she'd wondered if the Initiative had been a good decision, but those had become fewer and farther between since she'd met Freddy.

*

"Hey, can we come in?" Terry asked, poking her head around the door.

Laughing, Freddy waved her in. "Yes, of course. Come on in, everyone."

"Within reason," Reyes cautioned, shifting their son in his arms.

Terry stepped inside, closely followed by Harry, Suvi, and Avela. Peebee gave a grandiose wave and announced, quietly, "We'd like you to meet Alan Vidal-Ryder, Reyes and Freddy's son."

"He's gorgeous," Harry breathed, starting to reach for his grandson, and then stopping. "May I?"

Smiling, Reyes carefully placed the baby in his arms. "I'm sure I don't need to show _you_ how to hold a baby."

"Of course not." Green eyes full of wonder and longing, Harry stared down at the baby. After a few moments, he looked at the proud parents. "Congratulations, Freddy, Reyes, Peebee."

She gave an indelicate snort as Terry gently took her nephew from Harry. "Why are you congratulating _me_? _I_ wasn't the surrogate."

"No, but you're married to Freddy and Reyes," Terry reminded her, admiring Alan. "He's so handsome. He must take after Reyes."

Freddy gave her an outraged look while Suvi took her turn to hold Alan. "If you're saying _I'm_ not handsome, what does that say about _you_?"

"That _I_ got all the good looks," she retorted, slipping an arm around Suvi's waist.

Far too used to the twins' banter, Avela just peered down at the baby. "Are _all_ human babies this small as newborns?"

"Alan seems to be the ideal weight and length for a newborn human," Harry replied after a moment's thought, hands clasped behind his back. "Terry and Freddy were smaller because they were twins."

Terry nodded as she helped Suvi show Avela how to best hold a newborn human baby. "Yeah, and we were born early _because_ we were twins."

"There are always outliers, of course," Reyes added as Avela studied the baby with awe and wonder. "In both directions."

Avela nodded and carefully handed Alan to Peebee, who smiled down at him with a besotted expression. Freddy wrapped his arms around his spouses with a contented smile. He missed his parents, but he knew his mother would love Alan once they discovered a cure for AEND and his father was likely watching over them anyway. _I look forward to the rest of my life in Andromeda with my husband and wife by my side._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yes, Terry, Suvi, and Avela end up together here, too. It's tempting me to re-write Terry's story, fuck.

**Author's Note:**

> After writing [Keep Breathing](https://archiveofourown.org/works/24777568), I wondered what sort of Pathfinder Freddy would make, and here we are. Thanks for joining me on this ride. I have plenty of ideas for more fics.


End file.
